Hatchling
by Eyes5
Summary: Samus. Metroid. Hatchling. A piece of planet SR388 has stabilized its orbit around a small star and Samus is inclined to investigate if the X still exist. She goes there despite protests from the Federation and the malfuntioning of her power suit.
1. Chapter 1

Note: The main thread of this story occurs after Metroid Fusion, although it will jump around a lot through flashbacks. Unfortunately, I have yet to play the first two Metroid games: Metroid and Metroid 2. I try to do my research when writing, but still, excuse me for any continuity errors.

Flashbacks will be indicated through a change in the point of view from third to first person.

Now, onwards...

Hatchling

Across the boundless orange-stained sky, a lone flying creature circled the air, crying out in its solitude. No one answered but the wind, smearing purple and pink clouds according to some random pattern which never failed to yield a tapestry of breathtaking design. It was a beautiful day. Who would guess that beyond the heavens existed the all the harsh vastness of space.

Samus waited impatiently, watching the mechanics as they finished the final inspection on her new ship. The wind whipped through her hair in a sudden gust, bending the golden threads to their will. She casually combed her hair back into place with her fingers, delighting in the feel of the wind. She always lets her hair down whenever she's planetside and off mission. Especially after days of confinement within a sweaty helmet, simple things such as the caress of the wind and scent of the air made the universe seem a little more friendlier than what Samus knew it to be.

What's taking the mechanics so long? Samus was about to give them a piece of her mind when a mechanic finally approached her, wiping the oil off his fingers with an old cloth. "Everything looks fine on your new ship, Ms. Aran, but I must warn you, having a custom made ship like this is gonna cost you an arm and a leg for repair parts." The man said. "Is a remote operating system really necessary? I mean, valet parking costs less on most planets." He smiled.

Samus looked down at the mechanic with a blank expression, refusing to respond to his joke. "I'm a bounty hunter." She said simply.

The mechanic raised his eyebrows and nodded. He turned his attention to a clipboard he was holding, wrote something on it, and handed it to Samus. "Sign here. Licensing and clearance have already been granted. The voice recognition and identity confirmation systems will have to be programmed by yourself, of course. Payment has already been received. So... I guess you can take off after this. A pleasure doing business with you."

Without looking at the poor mechanic, Samus took the clipboard from him and read it through carefully. Satisfied that everything was in order, she signed the paperwork and handed it to the mechanic, who thanked her again and left her to the new ship.

Samus surveyed the ship from where she was standing, feeling a bit nostalgic. This ship was almost an exact replica of her first orange one, only cleaner, and with new features installed. For example, the ship's bottom now comes equipped with four gravity-manipulating disks useful for hovering as well as the original thrusters.

Her most recent purple ship did not truly belong to her, but was property of the Federation. It had been at her disposal during the X emergency. But after her mutiny on that mission, the Federation reclaimed the ship and left her stranded on the planet she was currently on. Samus had been reluctant to part with the Federation ship, for its computer contained the mind of her old friend and CO, Adam Malkovich. But there was nothing she could do about that. She was only grateful that the Federation did not imprison her or charge her for her hand in the destruction of the B.S.L. labs.

The entrance to Samus's new ship was located at its top and had no ladder or beam leading up to it. This ensured that nobody (at least no humans) could climb up and break into the ship. But this was no obstacle to the bounty hunter. She crouched down and easily leaped twenty feet into the air. Landing precisely on the ship's opening, Samus felt the hum of machinery and let the ship draw her in.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It didn't make any difference whether my eyes were opened or closed. If closed, everything was black. If opened, everything was white.

My lips were so dry, but I could not even summon the strength to lick them. My body would not respond to my commands. Everything was dream-like. It's not so bad, lying here without sensation. Nothing really matters.

Suddenly, an intense pain in my right arm threw me into full consciousness. My eyes flew open. I tried to scream, but I could only gasp through my already open mouth. Oh God! What is happening to me?! It felt as if a large chunk of my shoulder was being torn off! I was breathing heavily and my eyes were wide open, although I couldn't see anything past the bright lights and the condensation forming inside my visor.

Then I heard a deep male voice cut through my panic and realized that it was human. He spoke calmly and was answered by another calm voice. A black figure suddenly blocked out the light and leaned his face close to mine, squinting. He was close enough for me to vaguely distinguish a human face through my visor and through the plastic and glass helmet he wore.

"She's awake." He announced to the others. "Her eyes are open and tracking."

Now he directed his words to me. "Samus Aran, if you can hear me, we are Federation scientists. You have been sent to us by B.S.L., who found you unconscious in your escape pod. Your power suit and body have been heavily integrated with the parasite X from planet SR388, and we are now in the process of surgically removing the infected parts of your suit. We have just removed a portion of your armor to expose skin for us to inject anaesthetic. You won't feel anything. You will be unconscious for the rest of the surgery."

The scientist moved away, again exposing me to the world of light. I had a million questions swimming in my mind, but no way to ask or get answers. 'You won't feel anything.' He had said. Do the scientists know that my neural system extends into my power suit while I'm wearing it? They removed part of my suit as if it was nothing more than machine shell, but they essentially ripped off my very flesh. Was the X within me worth the risk of these scientists messing with my body?

It didn't matter. I couldn't do anything to stop them. They stuck a needle in my arm and within minutes, I was unconscious again.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It took Samus about half an hour to walk from the ship hanger to the hotel room where she had been living for the past three weeks. It had been hell to find a hotel which was willing to accept exotic animals, namely the Etecoons and Dachoras, who tagged along with the bounty hunter simply because they had no where else to go. Samus would of bought them their own ship, that is, if she could afford it right now. Simply buying food for the aliens was devastating enough to her rapidly shrinking savings. She ha to find a new bounty soon, or consider waitressing for a while.

Walking out in the open in this sprawling metropolis earned Samus many stares, especially from human males. Infused with Chozo blood and the result of other genetic techniques, she was perhaps more physically perfect than any other human in existence. Also, when she was infected with the X, she lost all her worldly possessions other than her power suit and the clothes on her back. Which actually didn't cover much of her back at all. The suit responded better when in contact with skin, so the only garment she owned at that time consisted of a blue leather sports bra and matching shorts. She was wearing that now. The result was a particularly voluptuous female which the men tend to gape at and women tend to glare at. The bounty hunter ignored the stares.

Finally, Samus arrived at the hotel. She opened the door to her room and was greeted by two of the Etecoons and the younger Dachora. The Dachora's mother raised her head and let out a chirp in welcome. The last Etecoon didn't even stir from its sleep.

"I'm back. I wasn't gone that long, was I? Hey, don't jump on me; your claws scratch!" Samus smiled at the energy her friends displayed. Although she considered herself a loner, it's good to have some company once in a while. "My, you're growing tall, aren't you?" She said to the young Dachora. He fluffed out his feathers in pride, trying to look bigger for her benefit. Samus knew they could all understand her even if they were unable to reply. "Hey, everybody. I just finalized my purchase on my new ship." She announced. "We'll be leaving as soon as the transportation I hired arrives. Get ready."

The mother Dachora got up and plucked the sleeping Etecoon off the floor and onto her back. It still didn't wake up. The rest of the creatures began gathering anything they could help Samus carry and piled it onto the Dachora's back, burying the sleeping Etecoon.

In the corner of the room, the fusion suit stood motionless in the midst of all this activity. Although there was no one inside, the suit seemed to stare back at its owner. Samus frowned slightly. After being infected with the X, the power suit had undergone immense changes to its appearance and ability. Instead of the perfection of machinery, it now looked almost...organic. Samus pressed her fingers on the arm of the fusion suit and it yielded to her touch. Like skin. This bothered her. A lot of things about this new suit bothered her.

A harsh ringing from the hotel's intercom shocked Samus out of her thoughts. An Etecoon answered the intercom and scared the wits out of the man on the other end. Samus quickly pushed the mischievous alien out of the way.

"What the hell was that?!" The distraught man demanded through the static of the moniter.

"Oh, just a friend of mine." Samus stifled a laugh. The man's expression was priceless!

"Odd company you keep." The man said, regaining his composure. "In any case, I am a representative of the Mider Transport Company. May I speak to a Ms. Samus Aran?"

"Speaking."

"We have your transport waiting outside. Are you ready to meet us? Or do you require some assistance with any luggage you have?"

"No, I'm ready. I'll come down right away."

"Alright. I'll be seeing you." And the man terminated the conversation.

The transport vehicle delivered Samus, her alien friends, and her sparse belongings to the docking bay where her new ship awaited. This vessel will be her home for the next few years, unless something unfortunate happens to it like what happened to her original ship. Finally, once everything was settled, Samus flared the main engines and propelled the ship into the yellowing sky and away from the planet.

As nice as the planet was, Samus was born and raised to the space and the stars. After three weeks planetside, she yearned for the thrill of darkness extending beyond the limits of her vision. She recalled the days when she was a freelance bounty hunter, drifting along the invisible currents of space or racing towards her next bounty. But now she was doing neither of those things. She had a specific goal in mind: a planet which was known as the medical center of the galaxy. She had to go see a doctor.


	2. Chapter 2

In order to reach the gardens from where I was standing, I had to leap into a tunnel which began at the top of a wall three times my height. It was so high. My natural instincts told me that I couldn't do it. But if Old Bird, who's the same height as me, could do it, then I could do it too. After all, am I not part Chozo?  
  
I crouched as low as possible, tensing up my leg muscles. Suddenly, like a coiled spring being released, I pushed myself off the ground with all my strength, leaping into the air. I felt myself slow and began to fall before I could even see the tunnel opening, but my extended hands just barely caught the edge. I hoisted myself up and looked down at the distance I just conquered, giddy with excitement.  
  
I did it! I did it! Wow, Old Bird will be so proud of me! I could almost see his face, gaping in surprise and muttering about how short yet strong my legs are. I ran into the station's main gardens and sure enough, Old Bird was there, hunched over a plant he was studying or something.  
  
"Old Bird! Look! I'm here! I jumped here from the commons room!"  
  
The ancient Chozo squawked in surprise and chuckled as he turned towards me. But he moved oddly, as if he was trying to hide behind him whatever he was looking at before.  
  
"Well, Samus-san. Looks like I'll have to child-proof the gardens from your mischief now." Old Bird laughed, but there was something unsettling about the way he acted.  
  
I looked past him. "Old Bird, what's that over there? What is it?" I walked closer and before the Chozo could stop me, caught a glimpse of what he was trying to hide. I gasped, the breath caught in my throat.  
  
There, lying motionless on the floor, was one of the other Chozo of this space station. His name was Crowlus. He was a fine example of a Chozo in his prime, tall and elegant with a plumage of feathers which made him look like he had a ridiculously large head. But now his breath was shallow and his eyes glazed a dull yellow. I could tell that he was dying. I could tell because I had seen it many times throughout the years. I turned to Old Bird, mouth open but unable to ask even one of a hundred questions in my mind.  
  
Old Bird placed a hand on my shoulder, trying to comfort me in any way he could. "Crowlus is leaving this world." He said softly. "He, like all the other Chozo, tires of life and wants to leave the mortal realm. Oh Samus- san, I'm so sorry you had to see this..."  
  
I turned to my friend and mentor with the beginnings of tears in my eyes. I wiped at them stubbornly, but in vain. "So he's just leaving us? But we'll be the last two people alive on this space station!" Old Bird nodded solemnly. I turned back to the dying Chozo. His helplessness and hopelessness angered me. "Why??" I demanded with a child's frustration. "Why are you tired of life? Why are you leaving us all alone?" Crowlus was unable to answer. His eyes slowly closed, never to be opened again. His last breath left him with a sigh. I felt a slight chill run through my body and I knew that it was the Chozo's ghost passing into the next world.  
  
Old Bird stood silent as I grieved for the deceased Chozo. "Why?" I whispered. I turned to Old Bird. "Why? Why have hundreds of young, healthy Chozo died on this space station when you and I are still alive?"  
  
Old Bird smiled sadly with his bird-like beak. "You wouldn't understand, Samus-san. The refugee Chozo here have all lost friends and loved ones on Zebes. They have lost hope. Without them, they find little meaning in the mortal realm. They long to reunite with those they once knew."  
  
I thought this over and for a moment, I thought I understood. But how could anyone just give up and drop dead like that? To give up your life simply because you are unwilling to endure tomorrow. It didn't make any sense to me. But then a more terrifying thought entered my mind.  
  
"Old Bird, will you tire of life?" I asked him with a child's terror. "You must have lost a lot of friends. You're the last Chozo from Zebes. You won't leave me here all alone, will you?"  
  
The old Chozo laughed a bit and touched my face with gnarled fingers. "Hatchling," He called me by my pet name. "I still find meaning in you. So it is for you that I continue to exist in this weary old body. I will not abandon you until you are old enough to fly on your own."  
  
Tears coursed freely down my face and I held Old Bird's hand tightly, afraid to let go, afraid that he might drift into a ghost at any moment. I buried my face in the thinning feathers of his shoulder. "No." I whispered. "Stay with me forever." But he did not answer.  
  
************  
  
Sitting in the doctor's waiting room in her fusion suit earned Samus nearly as many stares as she gets without it. She expected people here to be used to odd creatures on this crossroads planet. Haven't they ever seen a female humanoid in a bio-mechanical power suit before? Was it the conspicuous bright orange of her suit that made them stare? Or was it the fact that the suit came with a beam cannon attached to the right arm? Well, as long as they don't cause any trouble for her, Samus couldn't care less.  
  
The whitewashed walls and stale air of the claustrophobic waiting room made Samus shift restlessly. There was no clink of metal from her suit as she moved. In a way, the fusion suit was more comfortable than her old suit, which was large and bulky despite its ingenious design which made it feel weightless. An improvement over the Chozo's original design? Doubtful.  
  
Finally, the secretary invited Samus into a room with the doctor and three scientists. Samus groaned. She had been hoping to see only the doctor, but whenever she entered her name into any Federation funded system, a horde of scientists would follow her, eager to study her Chozo designed power suit. The presence of all these scientists annoyed Samus. It annoyed her so much that she decided to shift her persona from stoic to bitchy.  
  
The doctor smiled at the bounty hunter and extended her hand. "Hello, Miss Aran. I am Dr. Loren Bernen, bio-mechanical medical specialist."  
  
Samus stared at the hand for a beat before shaking it. "And who might those three be?" She asked bluntly, nodding her head at the three men who sat against the wall, wearing identical white lab coats.  
  
Dr. Bernen blinked, taken aback by Samus's abrupt manner. "I'm sorry. Allow me to introduce Dr. Lui Chen, leading researcher of human nervous extensions, Dr. Yamaro Peter Sofard, inter-species genetic infusion specialist, and Dr. Camerence Shalafiki, Federation military theorist. Dr. Shalafiki is here because he has studied your power suit once before, Miss Aran, and may provide some insight for the rest of us."  
  
"Really." Samus replied blandly. She didn't remember the Shalafiki scientist admid all the other scientists and specialists the Federation used to throw at her. "I asked for one doctor. Are you other three scientists here to babysit me?"  
  
Dr. Chen coughed irritably. "Miss Aran, the symptoms that you reported to Dr. Bernen are not normal among humans. It may have been derived from a number of factors you have been exposed to in your lifetime, such as your Chozo heritage or lingering effects of being infected by the X. Dr. Bernen, knowledgeable as she is about bio-mechanical illnesses, would not be able to take all these factors into account. All of us, in fact, may not be able to pinpoint your problem."  
  
"So you might not even be able to do anything." Samus muttered under her breath.  
  
"Tell us about your symptoms, Miss Aran." Dr. Chen said, pointedly ignoring Samus's last comment.  
  
Samus sighed and decided to cut the scientists some slack. "Okay. Where should I start? I assume all of you know about my surgery with the X infection and my involvement with the B.S.L. spacestation?"  
  
They all nodded. But Dr. Sofard took out a notebook and flipped to a marked page. "About your surgery, I did some further research about the effects the metroid vaccine had on X-infected victims. You may not know this, but variations of the vaccine have been used on other patients before. However, the metroid DNA was rejected in all of them and they usually ended up as complete X hosts. Those victims had to be euthanized. The only people who survived are those who were infected only in their appendages, which could be easily amputated. The fact that you survived the X intact and accepted the metroid vaccine is of much interest to researchers and scientists."  
  
"Oh? I didn't know that." Samus sounded much calmer than she felt. The last thing she needed to know was that she had another unexplained oddity about her. Chozo blood, power suit, survivor of the X. It wouldn't surprise her at all if she ended up preserved as a museum oddity after she dies.  
  
"Please continue, Miss Aran." Dr. Bernen prompted. She had a clipboard and a pen poised to write.  
  
Samus sat down on one of the spare chairs. "Ever since B.S.L. spacestation was destroyed, I've been feeling...lethargic. I mean, I felt fine when I was actually on B.S.L. But now, in the mornings when I wake up, I can hardly move. It gets better during the day. And it gets a worse if I'm out of my power suit. Speaking of the suit, I want to know what these are." Samus pointed to the mandible-like structures above her oxygen tubes and the blades coming out of her left arm. "They don't serve any function, yet they're there. I doubt they're a cosmetic addition on my surgeon's part. I'm also wondering about my suit's new texture."  
  
"I can provide more information on that, Miss Aran." Dr. Shalafiki interrupted. "I was one of the surgeons who was working on your reconstruction during the X infection."  
  
Samus's eyes widened. She was suddenly able to recognize Dr. Shalafiki's baritone voice as the same voice which spoke to her during her surgery.  
  
"We applied the metroid vaccine to you even though it had never worked on any other victims before." Dr. Shalafiki continued. "But we were desperate. To our surprise, your body took in the metroid DNA immediately and all the X cells within you were eradicated soon after. The scientist team reconstructed your power suit the best we could from parts still attached to your body. However, as we waited for your recovery, odd features began to grow on your suit. These included patches of yellow appearing where they shouldn't be, the growth of the blades and mandible-like structures, and the softening of your suit into an almost epidermis-like material." The scientist shrugged. "Nobody knew what the side-effects of X recovery should be, or how the metroid vaccine affects the body. We took the new growths as a sign of recovery."  
  
"But WHY did they appear?" Samus demanded. She wanted answers. And she was getting impatient at all the information she was trying to absorb from the scientists.  
  
Dr. Shalafiki shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine."  
  
Samus slammed her fist down on the armrest in frustration, making the scientists cringe. She smiled inwardly, pleased that she still provoked that sort of reaction in men.  
  
Dr. Bernen was too busy writing to notice. She stabbed the period at the end of the sentence and looked up. "Miss Aran, can you please elaborate on what you mean when you said that your condition gets worse when you're out of your power suit?"  
  
Samus glared at the scientists and turned to the doctor. Dr. Bernen seemed to be the only one on track here. "I mean just that. After walking for while without my power suit, I simply have to sit down. It's not as if I overexerted myself or anything. I'm not tired at all. But I know that if I keep going, I'll fall over at some point. Also, if I take off my suit after wearing it for a long time, I would simply collapse. It sometimes takes me half an hour before I have the energy to get up again."  
  
"What would constitute as a long time to wear the suit?" The doctor asked.  
  
"A few days."  
  
"How long have you been wearing the suit now?"  
  
"A....few days."  
  
Dr. Bernen nodded and placed her clipboard neatly on her lap. "Miss Aran, would you please remove your power suit? We would like to see exactly what the symptoms you speak of are like."  
  
Samus had been dreading this. She hated being around people in a moment of weakness. But the bounty hunter had never been one to play the coward. And if a solution to her illness could be found, then it was well worth a bit of humiliation.  
  
Samus stood up and took off her helmet, blinking in the bright lights that reflected back even brighter on the white walls. She unlocked the opening of the suit at the small of her back and slowly withdrew her arms, then her legs. It was an odd sensation to remove herself from the fusion suit. Parts of it in contact with her skin would feel sticky as Samus pulled away, like the pulling apart of two magnets. The suit had always been a biological part of her, but their link had never been so close.  
  
As soon as Samus stepped out from the fusion suit, she fell backwards. Dr. Chen moved quickly to catch her, while the rest of the specialists exploded into yelling and frenzied action. Samus suddenly found herself bombarded with stethoscopes, thermometers and other equipment.  
  
"Her heartbeat is normal, but her blood pressure has gone down dramatically!"  
  
"The fusion suit's energy levels are within a normal range. What is written under this flashing green light? It's written in Chozo script!"  
  
"Should we call an ambulance?"  
  
"I'm taking a blood sample. I'm also taking a circulatory fluid sample from the suit."  
  
"Miss Aran! Can you hear me? How many fingers am I holding up?"  
  
For the next ten minutes, Samus watched the activity around her, lying helpless and prone on the floor. Finally, she tried her voice and found that she could speak again.  
  
"I'm....I'm okay." She said. Everyone stopped for a moment and stared at her, amazed that she's talking. Samus managed to prop herself up to a sitting position with Dr. Chen's help. She stretched and flexed her fingers. "The truth is, although I couldn't move, I felt fine."  
  
Dr. Sofard frowned and scratched a pale patch of skin on his neck. "This is most unusual. I've never seen anyone display such symptoms before. Other species, maybe, but not humans."  
  
"It appears to me that it's the fusion suit which is causing most of the problem." Dr. Bernen was scribbling madly on her clipboard and didn't even look up while speaking.  
  
"Miss Aran, I'm afraid that any diagnosis we come up with at this point will likely be inaccurate until we run some lab tests on the samples we've just taken." Dr. Shalafiki said. "I would also like to examine your fusion suit for a day. With your permission, of course."  
  
Of all the people in the room, it was Dr. Shalafiki that Samus trusts the least. The Federation had marred itself in Samus's eyes and she was wary of all its members. If she gave up her suit for a day, Dr. Shalafiki will probably make up excuses and whatever to try to keep it for a longer period of time. The Federation was obsessed with the technology of her power suit.  
  
Dr. Shalafiki sensed her hesitation. "Only for a day, I promise. If you would like, you can stay and watch the procedure for yourself."  
  
Samus shook her head at that prospect. She had better things to do than to wait around all day, listening to various scientists with their medical jargon. She got on her feet and tried her legs, making sure that they don't collapse under her.  
  
"Okay. I'll let you keep my suit for a day. ONE day." Samus said the last part with a tinge of threat, especially directed at that Shalafiki man. "I'll be here at 9 standard, and my suit had better be here as well."  
  
"I wouldn't have it any other way."  
  
Samus began to leave, but Dr. Bernen caught her in the hallway. "Miss Aran, if you're going out, you can borrow my overcoat if you want to."  
  
The bounty hunter turned around. "Huh?" She replied intelligently.  
  
The doctor frowned. "You're not going to walk around in that, are you?" Dr. Bernen pointed to Samus's current attire, which consisted of a tight tanktop cut just above the ribs and low jeans hemmed high above the knees, exposing an embarrassing amount of skin.  
  
The bounty hunter looked down at herself, then laughed out loud. "Doctor, I'm not a woman known for her modesty." Samus shrugged. "I don't mind walking around like this."  
  
Dr. Bernen chewed her bottom lip nervously. "Well, you should be able to take care of yourself, considering that you are a bounty hunter. But be careful. I'll see you tomorrow, Miss Aran." And with that, the doctor turned back to rejoin her colleagues.  
  
Samus felt a bit better about leaving her suit with Dr. Bernen since the doctor expressed concern for her. Yet, what was there to be concerned about? A peaceful little planet like this one couldn't pose much of a threat to famous and feared bounty hunter Samus Aran, with or without her armor.  
  
Samus went outside and breathed in the flavorful air. It sure beats the recycled oxygen from the power suit or the smell of anaesthetic from the doctor's room. A fresh breeze tugged at Samus's hair. She pulled out the elastic holding it in a ponytail and prepared to explore the planet. 


	3. Chapter 3

So there I was, witnessing the last breath of the last metroid. A fitting end to a formidable species. The metroid queen screamed and sputtered in her death throes, thrashing in a pool of blood and plasma from her own body. I stood nearly motionless, trying to catch my breath from the preceding battle. I felt like I needed to watch this. To witness the death of the metroid species.

Finally, the metroid queen lay still. I thought she was dead and began to leave the room but when I turned for one last look, I noticed one of her three remaining eyes watching me. What emotion could be contained in those bright orbs of eyes? Pain? Probably. I took a step closer. Fear? Regret? Hatred? Probably not. The metroids are an emotionless species, only able to distinguish between the edible and inedible.

I aimed my right arm at her and switched my beam cannon to the missile launcher. Then I ended her misery.

I left the queen's chamber, leaping over the rocks in my way. At the top right corner of my visor, I glanced at the faint metroid count meter which now stood at an unblinking '00'. I suppose I should have been proud of my victory where many others have failed. The bounty that I'm going to receive from the Federation could buy me a small moon if I was ever inclined to purchase one. I should have been happy.

I sighed. But the killing of innocent creatures had never made me happy. The metroids were innocent, and dangerous, yet, innocent creatures. If species like the Space Pirates or abominations such as Mother Brain didn't exist to abuse them, then there would be no need to sacrifice the metroids in exchange for galactic peace. Hell, I was so giddy when I killed Mother Brain that I could have been doing cartwheels if I wasn't so busy running for my life.

But ruthless genocide... That just leaves me with a bitter taste in my mouth. Argh, I must be getting soft.

Suddenly, the metroid count meter flipped back to '01'. What the...? I tapped my visor once with the barrel of my beam cannon but the digit remained as it was. There was no mistaking it. Another metroid was alive, somewhere.

I held my cannon hand at ready, fully expecting a metroid attack to come from any direction. Any direction but down. In fact, if it wasn't for its mewling squeaks, I might have stepped on the little metroid which was hatching right at my feet. Against my better judgement, I crouched down and leaned my face close to the dawning lifeform. I had never seen a creature so... new, so delicate, so fragile. I was fascinated by the faint pulsing of its tetranuclei and by the intricate detail in its tiny fangs. Those fangs chewed through the membranous eggshell confining the metroid, spilling out egg fluid.

The tiny metroid didn't fly at first but rolled onto its dome back, squeaking piteously. It was trying to remove one last stubborn piece of eggshell stuck to its body that it couldn't reach with its fangs. It looked so silly and helpless, rolling around in frustration. Resisting the urge to giggle like a schoolgirl, I plucked the shell off the baby. Now comfortable, the metroid rolled back into an upright position and stood still, as if observing me. I couldn't tell if it actually was, for it had no eyes. But it seemed to be watching me as curiously as I was watching it.

Suddenly, the infant leaped into the air, making me back away in shock. A previously ignored voice in my head now screamed, "Samus, you IDIOT!! It's a metroid! Kill it before it kills you!"

Hissing a string of curses, I held my cannon steady with my left hand and aimed. I fired two shots, both of which missed due to the little metroid's incredible agility and small size. Or maybe I wanted to miss; I don't know.

The metroid lunged. In the blink of an eye, it was too close for my weapons to hit. I crouched down and prepared to roll into a morph ball, which was the only way to escape a metroid attack. I felt the impact of the larva metroid on my chest and braced myself for the excruciating pain which would begin when it started draining my energy. But the pain never came.

"Huh?" I said.

"Squee!" The little metroid answered.

I had a hard time looking down at it since my power suit wasn't designed with much of a neck. But I could see the top of its dome body which, surprisingly, was not glowing with energy acquired during feeding. It was still attached to my chest, content there. I plucked it off me and its mandibles wiggled in weak protest.

It would be so easy to simply stuff the baby up the barrel of my gun, making it impossible for me to miss with the ice beam. Or I could just squeeze my fingers, although I'm not certain if physical pressure would hurt a metroid. Infanticide and genocide, all in one shot.

But...maybe it's a defective metroid, unable to absorb energy. Why else was it attached to me but not hurting me? It would die if it wasn't able to eat; I could just let nature do the job for me. With a tinge of hesitation, I released the infant, who floated off chirping. It'll die soon enough, I told myself.

Now, how the hell do I get out of here? The tunnel that I used to enter had caved in during the battle with the metroid queen. The only way out was blocked by a thick layer of crystalline rock. I've already tried to break that type of rock with everything I had: missiles, bombs, beams, I've even punched it once, all to no avail.

Suddenly, I heard the shrieking of the metroid again and turned just in time to see it rushing at my face. I ducked, causing it to overshoot my head and smash into the wall. I was about to shoot it for attacking me when I saw that its real target was the wall itself. In fact, once I took a closer look, the infant was eating the crystalline rock!

I activated my scan visor and sure enough, found that the rock contained some sort of organic energy mineral. Sugar to a metroid, I suppose. The rock easily crumbled without its energy components. I gingerly stepped through the gaping hole and squinted my eyes in the poisonous yellow light of this planet's sun. Now the baby circled endlessly around my head, squeaking as if searching for my approval.

"Hey, you're quite feisty for a newborn, aren't you." I said to the metroid. I caught it in midair. "What's wrong with you? You can suck energy, but you're not eating me. Then why are you following me?" I didn't expect it to understand my words at all, but it squeaked excitedly at the sound of my voice. I made a face of disgust. It seemed as if the universe was mocking me for my reluctance to kill this metroid by making it friendly towards me. But what might a bounty hunter do with a tame metroid?

I tossed the infant back into the chamber and ice beamed the entrance shut, trapping it inside. It threw itself against the ice in attempt to follow me and shrieked in pain upon impact with the cold surface. I could see it hovering left and right, looking for an opening in the rock but finding none. Then it started crying. It was a mournful, high-pitched whimper that made me shiver despite the heat. Of course, I had no idea what a metroid cry sounded like, but what else could that desperate keening be? I made my way to my ship with the child's cry haunting me until I was too far away to hear.

Once inside the safety of my ship, I took off my helmet and tossed it aside. God was I tired. All of SR388 was an inferno. I could feel the effects of the sweat sticking to my body. My power suit regulated the homeostasis of my body, including sweat output, but I was still dying for a shower. I yanked my hair out of its ponytail, letting it drape around my shoulders. Then I felt something grab onto my head.

"AAAGH!!" I clawed at my hair in an attempt to get it out. Damn it, whatever it was, I couldn't shoot the thing at such a close range!

I heard a familiar squeak and instantly froze. Oh my God! It's the metroid! Without my helmet, I couldn't roll into a morph ball! If it decided to drain my energy right then, I would be completely defenseless.

Images of what would happen to me flashed through my head in terrifying vividness. There have been better ways to die than to die as the victim of a metroid. I could see myself screaming and thrashing as the thirsty fangs found my neck, draining me of my life's energy. I've felt it before, the immeasurable the pain as every cell in my body screamed in agony. The only mercy would come in a quick death.

Stupid, stupid Samus, I said to myself. What little compassion I had was going to be the cause my death. How ironic for me, the person who spared the last metroid to be killed by that metroid itself.

A minute passed. Two minutes. I was barely breathing. I was beginning to shake from staying in one position too long and from the adrenaline assaulting my body. What was the metroid doing?

Slowly, carefully, I angled myself slightly so I could see the metroid on a reflective surface. It had made a little nest in my hair and clung to it motionlessly, softly glowing the color of inactivity. The little devil fell asleep in my hair! I pulled it out quickly and slapped my helmet back on.

"What is your problem!?" I demanded of the infant. It stirred from its slumber, a little ball cupped in my hand with its fangs curled up.

"Miii..." It purred sleepily, completely oblivious to all the trouble it caused me.

I'm not a big believer in God or destiny. But I knew that one of those two powers was at work today and deposited this infant into my arms. And like most cosmic powers, it took special pains to make the situation as ironic as possible, entrusting me, the one who destroyed metroids, with the responsibility of caring for the last metroid.

I could still kill the baby in cold blood if I wanted to and the universe would be that much safer. A single metroid could destroy galactic peace if it's in the wrong hands. But was that really what I wanted? The metroid did not deserve this; it had hurt nothing in the short time since its emergence into life. And...sleeping quietly in my hand, it looked so harmless. Harmless and helpless.

Wasn't I also once in a similar situation as this infant? Yes, the Chozo told me that they found me years ago, the only survivor of the pirate attack on space colony K-2L. I would have died if the refugee Chozo from Zebes didn't come to rescue me. Who would rescue this metroid infant? I felt my resolve melting for the little creature.

I sucked in a deep breath and made my decision. "Alright, hatchling. You can come with me." I said to the sleeping metroid. Yes, I was definitely getting soft. I placed it carefully in a glass tube and screwed on the lid.

But still, I couldn't keep the metroid with me forever. Perhaps the Federation would be willing to raise the metroid. I'm sure they would love to study it. I took another look at the infant and removed my helmet. "I'll find someone to take care of you."


	4. Chapter 4

Samus made several trips back and forth to her ship during the day. She didn't consider herself much of a shopper, but was currently prepared to part with some major credits. This was her first chance to furnish her ship since she bought it. In addition to the necessities such as fuel tanks and navigation equipment, she also bought a plentiful supply of food for herself and her current roommates.  
  
The moon dipped behind the horizon, blanketing the city in darkness. The sun began to rise, but was little more than a dim, cloud-like shimmer on this planet. The moon was much brighter. So although it was the morning in theory, it might as well be nighttime for all practical purposes.  
  
Samus was sitting outside a little cafe on a street corner, waiting for her energy to return to her like a rechargeable battery. This problem of hers was really beginning to become a nuisance. She bitterly wondered how she would hunt her next bounty in such a weakened state. She frowned as she sipped at her latte. Her frown deepened at the taste of the coffee and she poured in more sugar although it was already piled high with cream and chocolate shavings. She had so few opportunities to indulge in her little- known weakness for sweets.  
  
A neon sign blinked to life in a shop across the street. Samus watched over the rim of her cup as other shops followed suit, as if on cue, transforming the city before her eyes. Suddenly, her senses were assaulted by a dozen new smells and sights, screams and raucous laughter merged into one, and dull metal buildings became abodes of entertainment to wile away the night. Samus realized that she was downtown and the city's nightlife was just beginning.  
  
She drank the last of her latte and an icy wind made her shiver. She had no idea that it got so cold when dark. Maybe it was a bad idea for her to refuse Dr. Bernen's overcoat. Samus paid for her drink and walked out onto the street, wrapping her arms around her exposed shoulders, trying to shield them from the cold.  
  
The bounty hunter walked for a little ways before she realized something odd about this section of town. The streets were dark from many broken lights and abandoned buildings. Sickly-sweet chemical smells dominated the air, a number of which she recognized as narcotics if not alcohol or urine. Samus realized that she was in the decrepit section of the city but did not quicken her pace a bit. She was more annoyed than worried about being caught in this part of town.  
  
A crowd of men and women blocked the sidewalk in front of a building, right in Samus's path. The men spoke in loud, slurred voices and the women wore less or tighter clothes than Samus did despite the cold. The bounty hunter pushed past the crowd, lips pulled tight in disgust at the stink of those people.  
  
She walked a little ways away. "Hey, bitch!" Someone yelled behind her. She froze. "You, girl!" The person repeated. Samus turned around and found a tall, burly man, looking at her with a lewd expression plastered on his face.  
  
She looked around and pointed to herself. "Who, me?" She said with mock innocence.  
  
The man drew his lips back in a toothy grin. "Yeah, baby. Wanna have some fun tonight? Come with me, the party's in here." His tongue flicked across his bottom lip.  
  
Normally, Samus would have played along with the man, then kicked him in the balls when it fancied her. But she wasn't willing to flirt with danger today. She's cold, there's this weird illness to her, and the man reeked of cheap alcohol, even at this distance.  
  
"Fuck off." She sneered. The man's face darkened, but Samus wasn't there to see it. She had already turned around and left.  
  
************  
  
The entrance to the gardens still loomed above me, although now it was only twice my height. And with my new power suit aiding me, I should be able to breach such a height easily. I was still nervous, though. Old Bird was watching me, scrutinizing my prowess with the suit and making the last adjustments.  
  
I leaped into the tunnel opening with plenty of air to spare. I was rather surprised by how easily the suit responded to my movement and thoughts. Despite being nearly too heavy to lift by hand, it weighed next to nothing when worn, and I suspected that it even regulated the gravitational pull on my body on different planets.  
  
Old Bird jumped into the tunnel to join me, flapping his feathered arms for extra lift. He grabbed my right leg, carefully removed a portion of the metallic covering, and fiddled with the controls in there. Then he jumped onto my shoulder and adjusted some of the wiring in my helmet.  
  
Maybe it's an effect of my power suit, but Old Bird felt almost weightless on my shoulder. He had always been small for a Chozo, but for the last year or so, he seemed to be wasting away before my very eyes. He was old when he first took me in, and I doubt many Chozo live to his age. But his mind was still sharp and his body was still lively.  
  
"I dare say your suit is finished, Samus-san." Old Bird declared as he jumped off my shoulder. I smiled behind my visor although he couldn't see it, but I think he knew anyways. I whirled around, like a girl spinning in a new dress, and just about as giddy. The ancient Chozo laughed. "With this suit, you shall be protected from all the harshness of the universe. Imagine! You are the first creature to wield Chozo weapons and wear Chozo armor in eons! But don't let this delude you." Old Bird jumped back into the commons room and I followed close behind.  
  
It always amazed me how much shorter he was than me. I remembered him in the past standing over me, a mere baby at the time, his unwavering confidence making him tall. A pillar among the Chozo around him, despite his short stature and tendency to hunch.  
  
"You are not at full power yet." He continued. "I do not have the knowledge to bring the suit to its full potential."  
  
"Well, this ought to give me an edge over most species." I said, mostly to reassure him.  
  
Old Bird shook his head with amusement. "There is always room for improvement, hmm? Therefore, I made your suit compatible with certain Chozo technologies. On most planets we have colonized, there are sacred statues which contain upgrades for your suit. And if you ever meet any other Chozo, or any species once allied to the Chozo, they might be able to teach you some new abilities."  
  
I suddenly stopped. Surely I had heard wrong...? "Other Chozo?" I asked. "But...I thought you are the last Chozo!"  
  
"Not at all!" Old Bird seemed surprised, as if he expected me to know this fact beforehand. "There are Chozo on other planets and space stations as well. They simply escape the notice of other races. And of course, there are always the Chozo ghosts, who transcend time, space and eternity."  
  
I stood there for a full minute as I struggled to comprehend this new grain of knowledge. "Wh....what?!" I finally managed to stammer. "You mean that for all the years that we have been living here, alone, secluded from all other species and contacts, we might have been living with other Chozo?!"  
  
"Well, we did visit some human colonizations." The ancient Chozo said self- righteously. It was true, we would occasionally visit human cities to get supplies and for me to learn how to get along with others of my species. But still...!  
  
"Besides," He continued. "Chozo on other planets don't need to be bothered by the trifles of our tribe." He said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.  
  
"Trifles...!" I yelled, but Old Bird kept talking.  
  
"Death does not concern the Chozo." He explained. "We have lived out our life as a civilization, and now peacefully and willingly subside into death. The Space Pirates may have destroyed us in body on Zebes, but our ghosts will remain."  
  
I opened my mouth to protest further, but the Chozo held up his hand, indicating that I shouldn't speak. I took off my helmet so he could see my outraged expression. He had never seen my face twisted with such rage, and his hand fell to his side like a useless limb.  
  
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" I hissed with rising anger. "You Chozo had weapons when Zebes was attacked, but you never used them. There are other Chozo in the galaxy, but you never bothered to contact them! You...you die as soon as you feel that life isn't worth living! What's the use of all this technology if you all die?!" I was practically screaming by this time. Old Bird simply stared at me, giving no outward indication that he heard. "You Chozo, despite your intelligence, are....are," My bottom was lip trembling. "Pathetic! Foolish! Naive! God, it's a miracle that your race has survived this long!"  
  
After a brief moment of silence, Old Bird slowly smiled, infuriating me even more. "If it is any consolation to you," He said sadly, softly. "I will make contact with others of my race very soon. Before long, every Chozo in the galaxy will know of you, Samus-san. The Hatchling, the Defender, the Newborn."  
  
His words made no sense to me and I was too furious to try to understand. I was blind to the sorrow in his eyes. With my jaw clenched tightly shut, I stormed past Old Bird and returned to my room.  
  
The next morning, I was awakened by two humans in spacesuits who told me that they were here in response to a distress call. It must have been Old Bird who sent the call, because I certainly didn't. But when I finally found him in the main control center, his ghost had already long left his body. 


	5. Chapter 5

*A slight warning: this chapter rates a little higher than PG-13. Read with discretion.  
  
The faint glow of phazon was distracting, even though I should have been long used to it by now. Here in the phazon mines, the light permeates every room, even closed chambers far from the actual substance. Maybe it was the mutated creatures all over Tallon IV, or the horror stories of the Chozo that made me nervous around this bio-chemical energy source. The relentless pulsing light of the phazon seemed to be attributable to a living organism rather than an inanimate element.  
  
Surrounded by abandoned Space Pirate computer terminals, a particular one caught my eye. The screen was left open on a blurb of script which I was unable to read. No problem, I simply scanned the words with my visor and let my power suit translate using a database of a few thousand languages. Before long, words appeared on my visor in writing more familiar to myself.  
  
"Hunter Weapons." Was the title of this entry. I raised an eyebrow. From what I had previously read from Pirate log entries, they referred to me as 'The Hunter'. I found it rather flattering, actually.  
  
"Science Team is attempting to reverse-engineer Samus Aran's arsenal, based off of data acquired from her assaults on our forces." I read aloud, as I had a habit of doing while reading. I might as well, since I lived and traveled alone.  
  
"Progress is slow, but steady." The Pirate log continued. "We believe we can implement Beam weapon prototypes in three cycles."  
  
"Aran's Power Suit technology remains a mystery, especially the curious Morph Ball function. All attempts at duplicating it have ended in disaster: four test subjects were horribly broken and twisted when they engaged our Morph Ball prototypes. Science Team wisely decided to move on afterward."  
  
The corner of my mouth twitched as I read the last two sentences. I chuckled. Unable to contain myself any longer, I burst into a fit of laughter.  
  
************  
  
Thin, velvet clouds materialized from once-dormant vapours in the air, creating a wispy fog which muted footsteps, breath and vision. It was cold. The fog seemed to eat people; the streets suddenly lost all its occupants as soon as the mist set in. One lone figure still prowled the city streets, hugging her shoulders in a futile attempt to fight back the cold.  
  
Samus sourly wondered what kind of city planner was hired for this planet; the moron had neglected to put up any street signs or maps for the direction-challenged visitor. The bounty hunter knew she was lost when she passed a distinctive neon display for the third time. Maybe some dimensional flux was at work here; she rarely loses her way.  
  
She sat on a street curb, hugging her knees. Her energy was at its limits again and the biting cold made her even more sluggish. Samus never used to be so vulnerable to cold, but she's rarely been exposed to it outside her power suit. Clouds of vapour formed as she exhaled. She was seriously considering sleeping right here, right now, and finding her way back to her ship once the moon lights up the city again.  
  
The chink of metal startled Samus out of her light nap. A man had thrown a few coins in front of her out of pity for the poor woman on the street. She picked up the change and stared at the man as he walked away, disappearing into the fog. Struggling to her feet, she dropped the money in the hat of the nearest panhandler she came across.  
  
It was very late now. No doubt the Etecoons and Dachoras were beginning to worry about Samus's whereabouts. There weren't many people on the streets anymore. The only sounds were muted, coming from inside the buildings.  
  
The bounty hunter walked down a street with a strong sense of deja vu following her. Yes, this place was definitely familiar. She made it halfway when she noticed a previously overlooked opening between two buildings. This narrow alley was one of the few paths Samus had not tried yet. With a shrug, she entered the alley; it's as good a path as any.  
  
The alley had no lights, doors or windows on either sides, just an unbroken wall of metal lining. Unable to see where she was going, Samus simply followed the light at the other end. She stepped in something that squelched audibly, and she irately imagined what kind of slime she'd have to scrape off her boot later. She was so distracted by her stained shoes that she failed to notice the real danger when it came.  
  
Samus took two steps and heard something splash into the puddle she had just escaped. She whirled around, posed for battle, but something immediately struck the side of her head, throwing her face-first into the wall. She gasped, trying to reclaim the breath knocked out of her. The cold was dulling her mind and she had trouble using her normally lightning-fast reflexes in her weakened state. What she would give for her fusion suit right now!  
  
The bounty hunter clenched her fingers, nails making marks on the walls, and pushed off with the palms of her hands. She was about a foot from the wall when she was slammed violently into it again. This time, a heavy weight backed by violent strength pinned her against the metal surface.  
  
"Hey, bitch." A husky voice purred from behind Samus. Her eyes widened as she realized that the weight pushing against her was the man who had spoken to her earlier. She couldn't scream with the hand he had over her mouth, and any noise she tried to make came out as panicked moans. This excited her assailant even further. His other hand groped her bare midsection with bruising fingers. Beads of sweat formed on her forehead despite the cold as she struggled desperately to free herself.  
  
"Hey baby, relax." The man said as he tightened his grip on his captive. He breathed in the scent of her hair and his lips brushed her ear as he spoke. Samus shuddered at the touch. "Not very smart. You could have come with me before, but now I'll have to get...rough." He emphasized the last word by pressing his hips harder against her pelvis. With frightening clarity, Samus began to realize exactly what this man wanted of her.  
  
Having faced Space Pirates, metroids, the X, and countless other dangerous species under impossible odds, Samus figured that nothing could pose much of a threat to her anymore. But now, to her anger and humiliation, she was subdued by some drunken bastard of a man on this tame, cultivated planet. She used to be able to kill a man by simply contracting her fingers around his neck. Her Chozo heritage lent her strength unheard of among her own species. But now her body was rendered nearly useless by this energy consuming ailment of hers. She felt her fear and panic growing.  
  
The man could sense this as well. He could feel it in the pounding of her heart and it gave him a sick sense of pleasure. He smiled. "C'mon, girl. You know you're gonna enjoy this." He held his captive's chin and angled her face closer to his lips. This gave Samus just enough freedom to move her mouth. She could have screamed for help and if she was lucky, someone would come to her aid.  
  
Instead, as the man's face drew closer, so close that Samus could feel his shallow breath on her cheek and see the pulse of the blood in his veins, she was overcome by a strange feeling. It was unlike anything she'd ever felt before, like a powerful instinct that suddenly took hold of her body, barring out all conscious thought. And before she could question the feeling, she acted upon it, lunging at the man, and sinking her teeth into his shoulder.  
  
"AAAGH!!" The man instantly backed away, releasing Samus from her cramped position. But she did not release him. With newfound strength and urgency, she tried to pin the man in a similar position he had her in only a moment ago. Instead, he tripped, falling backwards with Samus on top of him, her teeth still attached to his shoulder. He flailed his limbs in panic, splashing water and mud all over himself.  
  
"Please! Oh God, stop!!" The man screamed desperately, eyes wide in terror and pain. Samus did not let go, but a part of her mind vaguely wondered why this man was reacting this way. As far as she could tell, the man's collarbone was preventing her from damaging any muscles or important arteries. It would have hurt, but not as much as this. Why was he in so much pain? Why wasn't he fighting back?  
  
Then again, in all logic, Samus should have been running away by now, or trying to inflict more damage than simply chewing on his shoulder. But this drive, this instinct that was suddenly unleashed, demanded that she not let go of her prey. Every cell in her body screamed for her to continue, continue to sink her fangs ever deeper into this soft creature's flesh and not let go until he died. His life energy rightfully belonged to her! Samus pushed her teeth in deeper, hungrily.  
  
The man screamed again. He clawed at Samus's neck and back, leaving behind bloody gashes which she paid no attention to. His thrashing grew weaker by the second. And as he grew weaker, Samus felt the energy return to her after being denied it for weeks. It was the most unusual, yet most fulfilling sensation she had ever experienced. She could feel, rather than see, an ethereal force leaving the man and being sucked up by her own body. It revived her. It made her shudder with pleasure and she would have laughed if it didn't mean letting go of her victim. She had never felt so alive!  
  
Before long, the man stopped moving. Samus was still attached to him, her eyes blissfully closed, a trickle of crimson escaping the corner of her lips. She remained like this until her breathing evened out, the instinctive rush fading. And when it did, her eyes snapped open, abruptly throwing her back to reality.  
  
"Oh my God!" Samus gasped. She quickly scrambled to her feet and backed into the wall. The man was dead, lying in a puddle of filth with his face frozen in an expression of terror. But how?! All she did was bite him, and human teeth were not lethal at all. She did not poison him, she did not suck his blood. Regardless, there was still some blood on her face, which she quickly wiped off with the back of her hand and transferred to the side of her pants.  
  
The bounty hunter had seen hundreds of creatures die by her own hand, many in more gruesome ways than this. But never before had she felt such primitive...satisfaction...in the death of her victim. Samus kneeled over and vomited, adding to the slime of the alley. She took another glance at the man and noticed how his shoulder sported a ring of teeth marks, red with blood. The surrounding skin looked paler and looser compared to the rest of the body, as if that region of flesh had been dead for days.  
  
Samus felt nauseous again, but her insides were already empty. She turned and ran. 


	6. Chapter 6

Metroids!  
  
My God, how could this be?! They're supposed to be dead! I saw the last one die before my very eyes!  
  
Emotions whirled in my head with such ferocity that I didn't know what to feel. Surprise, disbelief, anger, horror, desperation, awe. Memories flashed like nightmare visions. Memories of all the metroids I have killed in all their evolutionary forms, of the Metroid Prime, and mostly, of the Hatchling.  
  
I pressed a hand against one of the glass tubes and leaned my face closer to the metroids hovering inside. None of them reacted to my presence. They couldn't sense me behind glass because they couldn't see. I sighed, letting my hand slide down into a resting position at my side. No, none of them was the Hatching; I might as well stop hoping. These metroids would gladly drain me of my life's energy without a second thought.  
  
My sad reminiscing was slowly replaced by outrage. The Federation was breeding metroids. Have they not learned that playing with such a dangerous species would inevitably lead to disaster? Have all my battles on Zebes and SR388 been in vain? When I get back to HQ, some heads are gonna roll over this.  
  
The restricted sector was eerily quiet save for the squealing of metroids. The dim lighting from long-abandoned computer terminals did not cast any shadows. I was too jumpy for my own good. Something was going to happen here, and soon; I could just feel it. I now realized that this sector was the driving force behind the actions of the X. They did not consider me their true target, but were focused on the destruction of this batch of metroids. And I knew since I opened the way into the restricted sector, the SA-X would not be far behind.  
  
I stepped into the next chamber with my gun raised. Before me rose four tubes containing metroids in various stages of evolution. A basic protoplasmic metroid with its two pairs of mandibles, grown almost mature enough to metamorphasize into the next stage. A clumsy alpha metroid, with newly developed eyes and protective shell. The gamma metroid, which prefers to hover rather than use the flimsy legs that its fangs have evolved into. And the zeta metroid, who would attack me relentlessly, regardless of how much damage I inflicted upon it.  
  
None of the metroids moved, so I assumed that they were locked in stasis. I tapped one of the glass tubes. The image of the metroid shuddered when I disturbed it, hissing with static. Ah, so these were only holographic projections.  
  
The next room was designed much like the first. Just a few tanks of basic metroids placed behind computer terminals. I had barely taken two steps into the room when I heard the sound of a hatch opening beneath me.  
  
Oh my God.  
  
It was immediatly followed by the sound of shattering glass. The floor began to shake under my feet as red emergency lights flashed in tune with a deafening klaxon. I could smell something burning.  
  
The SA-X is here. I have to run away!  
  
There were no exits from this room other than the way in which I entered it. I readied my ice missiles, in case I needed to buy a little time against the SA-X, and ran into the evolution chamber. But to my slight relief, it was not in this chamber. Like the room before, there was no way to escape. I suppose my only option would be to somehow make it past the SA- X in the next room, then hopefully find a hiding space somewhere in NOC. Trying desperately to slow my thundering heart and ragged breaths, I ran blindly through the open hatch.  
  
I once again found myself facing the SA-X, the parasite which possessed an exact genetic copy of me at the peak of my powers. A sense of horror and hatred always accompanied our meetings, and this time was no different. But for some reason, the SA-X didn't even notice me though I stood mere meters away from it. It was randomly shooting into the air, completely oblivious to everything but its target above. I looked up.  
  
The metroids were loose.  
  
The SA-X was shooting at the metroids with a fury and desperation borne of the deepest instinct the X had. The survival of their species. I had no doubts now that the X were willing to destroy this space station, me, and themselves in order to kill off the last of the metroids.  
  
A few metroids already lay dead at the SA-X's feet, but others were still emerging from the broken glass tubes. The ceiling collapsed, allowing more metroids in from the room above. Finally, one of them lunged at the X's gun arm, digging its mandibles into the power suit. The SA-X's arm jerked in pain, making its shots go wild.  
  
Sensing their opportunity, the other metroids descended, smothering the SA- X with their gelatinous bodies. My copy writhed like a dying animal, clawing at its attackers with mortal desperation. Then it screamed, a demonic shriek which has never been heard emmited from a human throat.  
  
During this whole time, I watched the scene in stunned horror. With the metroids were distracted and the SA-X being eaten, this might be my only chance to escape. The hatch into NOC has been slagged by my copy, so I turned my attention to the ceiling. Yes, there must be an escape somewhere up that shaft!  
  
"Detatchment of restricted sector imminent." A disembodied feminine voice warned monotously. "Sixty seconds until isolation lockdown."  
  
Shit! So the Federation's trying to save their own pitiful ass now that their experiment has gone wrong!  
  
I space jumped through the collapsed ceiling into the room above me. Landing on a remaining edge, I took a breather and tried to find an exit. But when I looked up, the blood drained out of my face. A couple dozen metroids hovered back and forth above me, waiting for their chance at the SA-X. I assumed that because the X are the metroids' main prey, they preferred its energy over mine, and so ignored me. But not even the SA-X could feed this many metriods, hungry as they were from being neglected for so long.  
  
"Fifty seconds until detatchment of restricted sector."  
  
I gritted my teeth together. Hell, I have to get out of here! I squinted my eyes, trying to see the top of the shaft, and was rewarded with a glimpse of what might be a hatch. It would be no trouble to space jump up there, but with the metroids in my way...  
  
No choice. The distance wasn't far, and I could endure a metroid or two for the few seconds needed to reach the hatch. What to do with the metroids afterwards would be considerably more difficult to manage. I quickly calculated a flight path which I hoped would put me in contact with the fewest metroids possible. But navigating with the space jump has never been a perfect science.  
  
With a deep breath, I took a literal leap of faith. Curling in my head and legs, I let the semi-automatic space jump function take over the complex aerobatics it requires to complete such a maneuver. I tried my best to steer, but the results were erratic at best. It wasn't long before I bumped into my first metroid.  
  
Ignore it! Ignore the pain! I can worry about metroids after I get out of here alive!  
  
"Forty seconds until detatchment of restricted sector."  
  
What the...? Instead of attempting to suck my energy, the metroid pushed me violently, disrupting the rhythm of my space jump and forcing me to return to the ledge. It floated down to my eye level, chittering angrily as if admonishing me for jumping into it.  
  
I stared at the metroid with my jaw hanging slightly open. The metroid didn't attack me! Is it possible?!  
  
"Hatchling?!" I whispered, my voice almost cracking. I reached out to the metroid. It dodged my hands and floated out of my reach, angling downwards towards the SA-X, who was already dead but still twitching.  
  
No, no. I saw Hatchling die before my very eyes. There was no way that metroid could be my Hatchling. But why else would it act like that...?  
  
Another metroid flew dangerously close to me, showing similar disinterest in my energy as the first one did. In fact, now that I noticed, none of the metroids treated me as prey. Perhaps all of them were Hatchling, cloned from the original Hatchling's cells. But I doubt the Federation has the technology to replicate memories from DNA as well as bodies. And none of these metroids paid me any attention, whereas Hatchling used to squeak happily when its near me, obsessed as it was with my presense.  
  
"Thirty seconds until detatchment of restricted sector."  
  
I could think about that later. Top priority right now was to get out of here in one piece. Ignoring the flood of emotions, emotions which I have forbidden myself to feel for years, I tried the space jump again. I was bounced back by a few more metroids, none of which tried to attack me, but sometimes forced me to restart the space jump in midair.  
  
I made it out of the restricted sector with seconds to spare. As I stood in the transparent tunnel chamber, I watched a piece of B.S.L. spacestation detatch from the main lab and crash onto SR388, taking with it the SA-X and the last of the metroids. 


	7. Chapter 7

Samus was not sure how found her way back to her ship, only that she kept running until the faint lights of the docking bay came into view. The Etecoons and Dachoras where ecstatic to see her, but confused by her dishevelled appearance. Not to mention the clotting gashes on her body and the fact that she doesn't have her fusion suit with her.  
  
Without a word to her alien friends, Samus went for a shower and collapsed on her bed without bothering to put on a nightgown. She managed about two hours of dead sleep before one of the Etecoons woke her up, pointing to the window bright with moonlight.  
  
"No, I don't wanna go." Samus mumbled, barely coherent in her half-awake state. Her eyes felt as if they had been glued shut and she had an ice- cream headache from going to bed without drying her hair. She wrapped the covers tighter around herself and shooed away the offending Etecoon. It didn't stop pestering her, however, until she had a glimpse of the ship's clock. It was nearly 8 standard. And as her mind woke more fully, she realized that it was almost time to reclaim her power suit.  
  
The animals had thoughtfully heated a bread roll and poured her a glass of juice for breakfast. She wolfed down the food, not really tasting it. The mother Dachora started making a fuss over Samus's wounds from last night, gently running her beak over the worst of the scabs and bruises, clucking with concern. The bird sent her offspring running off to the supplys cabinet and back to Samus with a tube of ointment.  
  
The bounty hunter stared at the tube and shook her head. "I'm okay. I'll be getting my suit back in an hour or so. It'll repair me so that I won't even have any scars." Mother Dachora glared disapprovingly at the human with her glassy red eyes. Samus raised an eyebrow and said, "Calm down, I know how to take care of myself." The Etecoons and Dachoras have taken it upon themselves to be temporary servants of their human friend. They felt as if they needed to repay her for her hospitality and for saving their lives twice; once on Zebes, and recently on B.S.L. Their gesture was quite touching, although it got a little annoying at times.  
  
Finishing off the last of her juice, Samus slipped on a black leotard she picked from her sparce wardrobe, and wore a pair of sweatpants and a jacket over it. It's more than she usually wears, but she means to cover up her injuries. Also, she's not in the mood to provoke more trouble than what she already managed to escape yesterday. What exactly happened in those terrifying moments? Samus shook her head. She didn't want to think about it. She shoved it to the back of her mind like a bad dream better forgotten.  
  
The ship's hatch irised open, permitting Samus to leap out onto solid ground. A few people gaped at her, awed at the height from which she jumped, then hurrying on their way when the bounty hunter glared at them in return.  
  
Samus walked about a block from the docking bays and was about to turn the first corner, when she suddenly stopped. She wrinkled her brow in confusion, looking back in the direction of her ship. Seeing nothing unusual, she kept walking with a puzzled expression on her face.  
  
Odd. She realized that for the first time in days, she had no trouble waking up. Before this, she would lie in bed for sometimes hours, struggling for the energy to even open her eyes. But today, Samus felt as well as a person can feel after only two hours of sleep. Maybe it was the lack of activity since the X incident that accounted for her illness. And after fighting off that man in the alley, she got the exercise her body needed to recover.  
  
Now that Samus thought about it, she's been quite the couch potato for the past three weeks. While waiting for updates on her new ship, she killed time by indulging in her rarely-expressed fondess for sitcom vids. She also managed to gain a pound or two since the Dachoras and Etecoons were always eager to fetch her a snack at her word. It's been years since the bounty hunter had been able to take a vacation like this. Her past had been a never-ending rush to her next bounty. Maybe she simply wasn't accustomed to so much inactivity.  
  
But she thought against telling Dr. Bernen about this possible reason for her illness. If she told, then the doctor would become suspicious and ask questions, questions which Samus would be unwilling to answer. How could she explain that she killed a man little more than a few hours ago?  
  
With her modest attire, Samus attracted far less attention than she usually does walking the streets. But during the whole journey to the doctor's office, she kept on looking behind her back, afraid some perverted sicko might try to jump her again. Moments of helpess terror tend to make a woman paranoid, even women such as reknowned bounty hunter Samus Aran. She couldn't wait to get back into the safety of her power suit.  
  
Within the office, Dr. Bernen and the three scientists were sitting in the exact same position as they were yesterday, as if they haven't moved since then. In the corner, looking as inconspicuous as a 6-foot tall, bright orange object could possibly look against glaring white walls, stood the fusion suit.  
  
"Miss Aran, you may reclaim your power suit." Dr. Shalafiki announced. He sighed, as if parting with that jewel of technology had taken him considerable effort.  
  
Samus didn't even glance his way but focused her attention on her suit. She walked over and carressed the visor lovingly. Altered or not, this suit has been with her for most of her adult life and she had no idea how much she missed it. The four specialists patiently waited while she peeled off the outer layer of her clothing to put on the suit. And all four of them stared at the scars and bruises that the jacket and sweatpants once hid. Those injuries had not been there yesterday. Dr. Sofard coughed nervously and hid his face behind his notes when the bounty hunter caught him staring a little too intently.  
  
Samus rolled her shoulders, testing the cozy fit of her second-skin. Unbeknownst to everyone else, the suit was also healing away the injuries, reverting her skin back to its milky-peach smoothness. It tickled a bit.  
  
"Miss Aran," Dr. Chen began. "We ran a few tests on your blood samples and power suit but we were unable to find anything out of the ordinary with the new features of your suit. Everything seems to be functioning normally. As for your lethargy complaints, I'm afraid we weren't able to come to any conclusions to that problem."  
  
"Yeah?" Was the only reply the bounty hunter could think of. She didn't expect them to figure out a solution to her problem so soon. Besides, she doesn't really care anymore. She's feeling better than she had been in weeks.  
  
"However," The scientist continued. "The cells in your suit appear to be sluggish, as if they lacked some essential nutrients. Tell me, what has your diet been like in the past month or so?"  
  
"My diet??" Samus asked. She struggled to think up what she had been consuming in the last little while. "Um, vegetable, protein, tofu, and witter root ration bars when I'm in my ship. When I'm planetside, I usually go to resturants. And I can survive in my suit for days without eating anything, living on just the suit's energy tanks. I know my lifestyle isn't very healthy, so I also take vitamin supplements." She shrugged. "But that's what I've been doing for years. I've never had problems with it before."  
  
"Maybe it's time for you to change your lifestyle." Dr. Sofard said off- handedly.  
  
"I personally think that it has something to do with your Chozo blood." Dr. Chen provided. "Being a higher species, I would imagine that they take special care in what they consume. If so, then their bodies would likely react violently to malnutrition. Do you agree, Miss Aran? Only you have ever lived among the Chozo."  
  
"Hmm. Now that I think about it, yes. They were careful about what they eat." The bounty hunter said. She recalled how Old Bird never allowed her to have seconds of any meal, claiming that eating too much would 'throw her off balance'. Not that she asked for seconds often; the food was often bland and unappetizing, thus, healthy.  
  
Dr. Bernen pulled out a preprinted sheet from her clipboard and handed it to Samus. "We thought that this might be the case, so we prepared a special diet for you. Here is a list of specific supplements you should be taking. Also, I suggest you eat fresh foods more often instead of ration bars. Perhaps you should keep a hydroponics unit in your ship if you don't already have one. Exercising often will also keep your metabolism up."  
  
Exercise? Samus smiled to herself. Well, that certainly confirmed her belief about her illness being simply a lack of activity. She took the paper from Dr. Bernen and stared at it, unable to even pronounce most of the foreign medicines on it. "Where am I supposed to get all this stuff?" She demanded.  
  
"Oh, just hand it to your local pharmacist and they should be able to handle most of it for you." Dr. Bernen replied. "If not, try a nutritionist."  
  
"Alright. Thanks." The bounty hunter said as she stuffed the paper into a hidden compartment in her suit. She watched the specialists expectantly. "So? Is that all? Do you have anything else to say?"  
  
"That is all, Miss Aran, but I'm still not happy with the results of our tests." Dr. Chen stood up to shake Samus's hand, but wore a thoughtful frown. "Like I said before, they are inconclusive. I doubt that your lethargy stems from diet only. Try the supplements for a week or two, and remember to contact us if any complications develop."  
  
Samus shook his hand and methodically shook the hands of all the specialists, muttering the necessary pleasantries. Gathering up her clothes, she left the doctor's office and once again examined the list of medicines she was given. She crossed her eyes and held the paper up at different angles, trying to make heads or tails of the letters. Not even her fusion suit could help her decipher the words. Pocketing the paper with a sigh, Samus stopped to ask for directions to the nearest pharmacy. Might as well finish all her chores right now. She couldn't wait to get off this planet and retreat to her sanctuary of space. She yawned. She was also looking forward to a full night's sleep for once. 


	8. Chapter 8

With a load of obscure medicines, fuel tanks, exercise equipment, worn clothes, a culture vat and seeds for her new hydroponics system, Samus Aran looked rather comical walking the streets, marching along on two seemingly inadequate legs. But her power suit could easily handle such a burden, and there wasn't even a wrinkle of strain on her face, although you couldn't see it behind her visor.  
  
Samus was walking quickly, eager for the comfort of her bed, when she noticed a section of the sidewalk closed off with yellow tape. It wasn't until she came closer that she realized this was the alley where the man had attacked her. Her face drained of color; she hurried past the taped-off area. Two officers were loitering nearby, and Samus couldn't help but catch snippets of their conversation.  
  
"...poor bastard, found dead and alone in the alley..."  
  
"...no blood loss, no poison, nothing seriously damaged..."  
  
"...bite marks. Human teeth...."  
  
It wasn't the possiblily of being caught by those officers that scared her so. It wasn't the memory of what happened there or the thought that some other man might try to rape her. She wasn't even daunted by the fact that she killed a person, having done so many times in her life. What frightened her the most was that she doesn't know HOW she managed to kill that man. Her memory failed her when she tried to recall exactly what had happened, remembering only her inability to control her own actions and the pleasure she got out of the murder. Confusion and doubt ate at her insides.  
  
She banished those thoughts quickly, reverting back to her normally logical and unemotional set of mind. It doesn't matter anymore; her illness was gone and from now on, she'll make very, very sure that no one ever tries to jump her again.  
  
The groceries wouldn't fit into the hatch of the ship, so Samus had to leave them outside, enter by herself, and beam her purchases in through the rear opening. The Etecoons and Dachoras were happy to see her, as usual, but were more interested in all the neat things their human friend just bought. One Etecoon took special interest in the culture vat, examining it, and the seeds, and turning to Samus with a questioning look.  
  
"I'm starting a hydroponics unit." She explained. "You guys can try setting it up in that spare chamber near the engines, if you can manage it for yourselves. I'm going back to sleep. Don't wake me up this time." She glared at a particular Etecoon, who huffed self-righteously in response. "In any case, once I'm awake and refreshed, we'll be taking off. It's about time I found myself a new bounty to hunt."  
  
************  
  
The physiology of metroids never ceases to amaze me. I find it incredible how one infant larvae can give rise to so many different lifeforms. If left on their home world, metroids evolve into an almost hive-like community, where the queen rules over all her offspring, who in turn metamorphasize into more advanced creatures. If infused with phazon, they mutate into hunter and fission metroids. And if exposed to beta rays, they grow quickly and divide, producing two creatures where there once was one.  
  
"What will you turn into, Hatchling?" I wondered aloud. Hatchling did not answer; in fact, it probably didn't even hear me. The little metroid was too distracted by all the interesting things in my ship. I was trying to surpress a giggle while watching the baby hover around haphazardly, unable to decide which object to play with first. It exhausted itself before it could make up its mind and abrubtly fell asleep, right on my head.  
  
I combed the metroid out of my hair and held it delicately. "Silly baby. When will you learn not to sleep on my head?" I gently admonished. I poked Hatchling's mildly-yielding body with a finger, watching it squirm irritably at my attempts to rouse it. It finally let out one long squeal of protest and reluctantly, but obediently, flew back into its glass tube, which I have designated as its sleeping area. It made a nest in the tube using an old sock and resumed its interrupted nap, glowing softly. I didn't bother to screw on the tube lid.  
  
It has been a deca-cycle since I rescued the baby metroid from SR388. Although I had planned to take it directly to the Federation research labs on Ceres, I kept on taking detours and pitstops whenever convenient. Truth to tell, I had grown rather fond of the infant. I named it Hatchling, after what Old Bird used to call me. And having hatched from an egg, the name seemed appropriate for a little metroid. I've figured out by now that Hatchling had imprinted upon me as its mother, which is why it refuses to hurt me. And I was beginning to think of the metroid as my child.  
  
At first, I was afraid of letting Hatchling loose in the ship, in case it suddenly decides to make a meal of me. But I had to let it out eventually, or it would starve to death. It's quite happy feeding on energy tanks from my suit and ship, but I think it would be healthier if it aquired some live food.  
  
What exactly do the metroids eat in the wild? I know that they can suck energy out of any ol' living thing, but they seem to leave the natural fauna alone on their home planet. Hornoads and glow flys coexist with metroids just fine. Perhaps those species have evolved a way to make themselves inedible? Maybe metroids eat a rare or elusive species of creature that I haven't encountered before. That could be possible; it doesn't take a large number of prey animals to sustain the meager population of 40-something metroids on SR388.  
  
A soft beeping from the ship's control panel interrupted my train of thought. The map which appeared on the computer moniter indicated that I was about one and half hours away from my destination. Good, I can have a quick shower before we arrive. There's not much else to do until then unless I feel like engaging myself in deep contemplation of the movement of the stars, pondering my own insignificant existance amongst the infinite heavenly bodies. Maybe I'll do that later.  
  
I wish my ship had enough room for a bathtub. I heard that baths are more theraputic than showers, but I might as well wish for a decent thruster engine, a manicure, and an onboard cook while I'm at it. Too lazy to fold my clothes on the shelf, I just let them pool around my feet and closed the glass shower door behind me. I turned on the water and let it run down my body for a while, highlighting my grooves and contours, enjoying the warmth. The glass was fogging up a little too quickly and I adjusted the water temperature when suddenly a metroid flew at me!  
  
"AAGH!! OH MY..." ...oh, it's just Hatchling. In my panic, I nearly slipped on the wet tile but grabbed onto the railing just in time. God, I'll never get used to that metroid's way of greeting me, not when others of its kind try to kill me when they lunge like that.  
  
"Mii! Miiiiiiiii!!" Hatchling cried, heedless of the hot water drizzling down its dome body. In our short time together, I've learned that I can identify the metroid's feelings by the tone and pitch of its sounds. And this insistant keening means that it wants to be fed.  
  
"Aww. Are you hungry?" I cooed gently to my metroid. It was latched onto me in the same way it did when I first found it, fresh from the egg. Only this time, there wasn't any armor between Hatchling and my bare chest. I quickly pulled the metroid off my skin. "Well, I'm not gonna feed you like THAT, you little pest!" I said, a little annoyed and absurdly embarrassed. I put Hatchling outside and closed the glass door, hoping that the metroid will not chew the upholstery at least until I'm finished my shower.  
  
An hour later, Hatchling and I watched from the front viewscreen as the planet Yasher grew ever larger before our eyes. I was in my power suit and the metroid was hovering above me in lazy circles. Yasher was a newly colonized planet which was experiencing a problem with vermin. Very large vermin know as oluks, who also come with a dexterious tail, wicked lower tusks, and nasty attitude loping on three thrice-folding legs. The price for these creatures wasn't too impressive, but attracted enough starving bounty hunters to keep the oluk population down. Well, I'm not exactly starving, but my Hatchling could use some variety in its diet.  
  
I chose a landing site far from any colonists. I wouldn't want Hatchling to make a meal of anyone. I stepped out onto the marshy Yasher lowlands and suddenly realized that I had no idea if metroids could tolerate this atmosphere! I whirled around, panicked, anxious for my metroid. My fears were quickly put to rest when Hatchling flew into my field of vision, utterly delighted with all the space it has to fly around in.  
  
"SQUEEE!! CHEEE!! YEEEEE!! MIIIII!!" It squeaked, quickly using up all its extensive vocabulary. Like any newborn, it found the world such a new and amazing place, and its innocent wonder was contagious. I couldn't help but smile.  
  
"Don't get too excited, Hatchling." I warned. "Stay close to me. Don't wander off." The infant responded by flashing rapidly, the metroid equivalent of a nod, and flew in tighter circles around my head. Such a clever child.  
  
The two of us wandered around for quite a while without any sign of an oluk. Walking in marshy conditions sapped more of my strength than I imagined, although it wasn't a problem for the metroid. Still, it's been a few days since Hatchling's last feeding and its energy depleted quickly. So I eventually found myself carrying the infant on my head like some sort of odd hat.  
  
I was just beginning to wonder where an oluk could hide in this unbroken marsh, when finally, one of the elusive monsters rose from the ground right beneath my feet. I scrambled out of the way and watched as the oluk emerged from what seemed like another extention of the swamp. It had a dirty yellow coat of limp hair that camouflaged perfectly with the surroundings of decaying plant matter. I might have walked right over one of these things without even knowing.  
  
"Hellooo...handsome." I purred in an almost feral tone. I had my gun arm pointed at its head, but did not shoot, not until my visor finished scanning the oluk. It pulled itself out of the mud with a squelching sound, water filling up the space it had just occupied. It slowly, lazily, settled each of its webbed feet on the marsh surface, allowing it to walk bouyed on the water. It didn't even seem to notice me. Will it attack? Or will it run?  
  
"Yasher Oluk," Those words appeard in my helmet, courtesy of my scan visor. "Semi-aquatic carnivore of planet Yasher. Oluks are perfectly suited for movement in their marshy habitat by walking or swimming on their webbed feet. They attack large prey animals or other oluks by charging with their tusks, while smaller creatures are subdued by their long, flexible tails."  
  
The creature towered above me on its three stilt-like legs, motionless except for the wind and water dripping off its hair. Why won't it attack?!  
  
It suddenly occured to me that I couldn't see the ending of the oluk's tail. And as I realized this, the ground beneath me exploded, blasting up a mess of weed and water. I was blinded for only a second, but in that time, I felt something wrap around my left leg and yank me into the air. It all happened so quickly, I had barely any time to gasp in shock. Held upside- down by what I finally realized was the tail of the oluk, I found myself staring downwards at the monster's purple, gaping mouth. I released the missile lock on my right arm and aimed it at the oluk. But before I could shoot, I caught a glimpse of a small, blue-green object falling back into the yellow marsh.  
  
"HATCHLING!!" I screamed, instinctivly reaching out to the metriod although it was far beyond my reach. Hatchling woke as soon as it hit the water, squealing in surprise. It struggled to free itself from the mud it was stuck in.  
  
The oluk held me over its open mouth, into which I conveniently fired a missile into. But the creature did not die, it didn't even let go of me. It gave a low moan and it simply lashed out with its skinny, hairless, but surprisingly muscular tail. With me still attached.  
  
"AAGH!!" I hit the water like the end of a whip. And at that speed, the water was about as forgiving as a solid wall. That first blow knocked the breath out of me and bright lights flashed in my eyes upon impact. Little droplets of blood stained the inside of my visor. My left leg was almost ripped from its socket, and God, it hurt like hell! If not for my power suit, I would be dead by now.  
  
The oluk held me in front of its face again, seemingly surprised to see me still alive. Barely able to breath, barely able to see, I could only hang there limply as my disoriented mind screamed at me to do something, anything! Then, out of the corner of my eye, a metriod, shrieking with rage, rose out of the marsh and charged, sinking its fangs into the oluk's neck.  
  
The reaction was instantaneous. The oluk screamed at a pitch that almost matched Hatchling's and writhed with an agony that only metroids could cause. It threw me away in its desperation and I landed face down in the marsh. I didn't bother to move; it hurts so much. I just let my power suit heal my body, using up precious energy tanks in the process. Distant and distorted from the water, I could hear the cries of the oluk weakening as it struggled for its life in vain. I pulled myself out of the mud before I could be completely submerged. And at that moment, the oluk gave a dying gurgle and landed on its side, right on top of Hatchling.  
  
"Oh my God...!!" I jumped up, disregarding my still-healing wounds, and ran over to my Hatchling's side. I tried to push the oluk away, but without firm footing, even my power suit's strength was no use. It took an inventive combination of the grapple beam and the thrusters on my back to pull the carcass off my baby.  
  
"Oh no, oh no..." I cried. I cradled Hatchling gently in my arms, stroking it with a hand that wouldn't hold steady. Instead of its usual semi-sphere shape, the metroid was flattened into a disk about an inch in height and twice its original diameter. Its colors were pale and its body was as still as death..  
  
There must have been some damage to my lungs; I felt as if I could barely breathe. Every breath I took came in sudden gasps, painful and choking through my throat. I closed my eyes and held Hatchling closer to me.  
  
"Squee."  
  
My eyes suddenly flew open and I stared down at the metroid in my hands. Was it just the moisture in my eyes distorting my vision, or was Hatchling really growing bigger...? No, it was no illusion. I held the infant out at arm's length and watched, bewildered, as it pushed and contracted out of its pancake shape. Finally, once again ballooned in the proper form of a little metroid, Hatchling flew out of my hands and stretched its mandibles, yawning, acting as if nothing had happened.  
  
"Hatchling!!" I squeezed my baby metroid in my arms until it oozed out of my grip like the protoplasmic blob it is. It did a funny little midair dance in front of me, to reassure me, and glowed brighter than ever with its newly aquired energy. I laughed for Hatchling, for myself, in joy and in relief.  
  
The oluk carcass was beginning to sink into the swamp. I still had to cut off its tail as proof of my bounty. I took a step towards my prize when my legs suddenly buckled beneath me and I fell back into the marsh. Hatchling flew down to my eye level, flashing with concern.  
  
"Ah, shit." I cursed, gritting my teeth. My left leg bone was not properly aligned with the pelvic socket. The power suit had depleted its energy tanks down to a dangerously low level, so much that it couldn't heal me and maintain life support at the same time. It's gonna be one painful hike back to my ship before I can access more energy.  
  
I was looking around for something I could use as a crutch when an unearthly shriek came from Hatchling. My head snapped up, only to be punched back with the impact of metroid fangs hitting my helmet.  
  
Oh my God! Is Hatchling going to kill me? Now that it has tasted live energy, does it crave more? In that moment of terror, those thoughts flashed through my mind, along with shock, panic, and the deepest, deepest sense of betrayal I have ever felt.  
  
But that lasted only for a second. Because I felt no pain, even though Hatchling's mandibles pierced my suit deep enough to tap energy. Instead, I stared at the top of my visor in amazement, watching the infant's quivering fangs, and watching my energy meter scroll upwards, energy tanks filling up one by one.  
  
Finally, Hatchling released me, looking a little paler than usual. I tried walking and found everything in smooth working order, including my hip joint. I stared at the metroid in awe. "So, you refilled my energy, Hatchling." I exclaimed. "Amazing. Can you do any other tricks?" The metroid didn't understand me of course, but twirled happily to see me no longer in pain.  
  
The two of us scoured the surface of Yasher for a bit longer, taking out three more oluks in the process. I could easily avoid their deadly tails by now, but I don't know why I even bothered. Hatchling would race ahead as soon as it smelled out the oluk and have it drained by the time I caught up. With each kill, my metroid seemed to learn better tactics against those monsters and became better at avoiding another flattening.  
  
I couldn't help thinking that Hatchling and I would make such a great team. I played with the idea of keeping the metroid as my hunting partner, together racing across the galaxy for new bounties. I wonder if I could train it to understand a few commands to keep it from attacking people. But that dream can wait until after the Federation finishes studying the metroid.  
  
We made it back to the ship before planet nightfall. I lifted out of the atmosphere and set the ship on autopilot so I could get some work done. Disappointed with the yellow mud staining my suit, I spent the next hour or so scrubbing the marsh residue off my power suit. I tried my best to wash off Hatchling, but that turned out to be quite a challenge. Like all younglings, it hated baths and teeth brushing. Most of the water and soap used on Hatchling ended up on myself and the floor. But I got a good laugh out of it.  
  
When I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer, I decided it was time for a sleep shift. For once, I let Hatchling sleep with me, curled up in the golden strands of my hair instead of in its usual tube. I wanted to show it my appreciation for helping me with the hunt today. And this might be our last few hours together. The research lab Ceres was already a visible speck in the distance. 


	9. Chapter 9

The front window of Samus's gunship displayed nothing but space and stars, stretching out endlessly into the distance. One would think that the ship's owner would grow weary of the sight over the years, but she was hopelessly in love with the ever-changing dance of the planets. It was here, out in space, that she felt most at peace with the life that reality had handed to her.

The Chozo used to say that she was 'hatched among the stars'. She earned this title not only from her love of the void, but also from her uncanny ability to navigate space without using a ship's computers or charts. Being able to pilot using mental calculations helped wile away days of journey from one planet to another. Plus, it also conserved the ship's memory banks. And Samus used all that empty hard drive for other pursuits.

Stored in her previous ship's memory banks were years of meticulous research and calculations she had compiled, information which she hoped would someday help her locate living members of the Chozo. It was Samus's dream to find survivors of the race who had reared her, but bounty payments and requests to save the galaxy always got in the way. The destruction of her ship during the X accident was a devastating blow to the bounty hunter. All those years of data lost in an instant. Regardless, she's now recompiling her lost data from scratch, undeterred by the previous loss.

Samus stretched leisurely, leaning back so heavily on her chair that she almost fell over. One hand remained on the computer interface while the other held an orange root which she had been chewing on. The Dachoras and Etecoons were incredible botanists; it's only been a week since they've obtained the hydroponics system and they're already producing a smorgasbord of cellulose edibles, much of which they gorged on themselves. But they were careful enough to leave seeds for the next growing generation so Samus wouldn't have to continuously restock. The bounty hunter wondered if she would ever have the patience to maintain the artificial garden once she found her alien friends a new home.

The hydroponics system was also a blessing because Samus was flat broke. Without the replenishable food source, she would be living off the energy from her suit right now and the animals might be eating each other. There were no bounties to hunt so close to civilization, and it was unlikely that Samus's usual employer, the Federation, would be dropping her a line any time soon. Not after her mutiny on B.S.L. Oh well. She figured that it would only be a matter of time and dead bodies before the Federation returned to her, begging her to take on some reputably impossible mission.

A square panel on the computer began flashing blue. Samus stared at it for a moment, then tapped it twice. A star map of the surrounding area appeared on the monitor, then narrowed in to a specific asteroid belt, then zoomed in closer on a particular orbiting rock. The asteroid shrank down to an icon in a corner of the screen, making way for an image of a dangerous looking insectoid. The creature, though only slightly larger than an adult human, had visibly muscular legs and arms augmented with wicked scythe-like blades. The hands were nimble and dexterous, proof of intelligence, even if they ended in cruel black claws. But their pale, glowing eyes gleamed only with evil, the characteristic trait of their species, distinguishable no matter what variations occurred in the individual.

Samus dug her nails into the interface and leaned her face closer to the monitor. She grinned, then twisted her pretty face into a feral snarl. "Space Pirates!" She spat. She used her hand to wipe the saliva off the screen. The Dachoras and Etecoons heard her and came running over to look. They reacted strongly to the image of the Pirate and chattered amongst each other, angry or frightened. They remembered well their capture on Zebes, even the younger Dachora, who shivered and sought comfort in his mother's feathers. Samus turned to them, lips pulled back in a thin smile.

"Well, well. I seemed to have stumbled upon a Space Pirate outpost." She said to her roommates. Her voice hissed like the dry leaves on a windy plain, barely masking the anger and hatred behind those words. Samus turned back to the image and stroked it almost lovingly. "Ooh, yes. I'll be sure to enjoy this bounty. I'll enjoy killing every last one of you bastards."

"Computer!" Samus demanded. The voice recognition system hummed in response. "Activate autopilot. Bring me down to that rock where the Space Pirates are. And do it discreetly." She lifted herself off the chair and, as if it was ritual, prepared for the upcoming battle.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sweat-dampened hair clung to my forehead as I ran, my breathing reaching a feverish pace. I ran in fear, towards the very thing that terrified me so. I followed it through a yawning chasm of its own making to find it pacing restlessly from side to side, furious at my intrusion, daring me to join it even deeper in the core. Teeth, hide and claw, this creature was built like a living tank, its body and defenses legacy of all the weapons and creatures it had assimilated into itself. And God, the thing was huge!

What was I doing here? In all logic, I should be aboard my ship right now, speeding away from Tallon IV rather than hanging my ass on the line trying to destroy this abomination. There was no bounty for the Metroid Prime. And I had already destroyed all the Space Pirates here. So what if the planet becomes a desolate, phazon-pulsing wasteland? Why do I care?

Of course I care. The Chozo on this planet, though dead, though mad, had made a plea to me which I could not ignore. They all knew of I, Samus, the Hatchling, the Defender, the Newborn, and they looked to me as their savior. Just like Old Bird prophesied, his last words to me. Was it you, my adopted father, who left carved writings for me on the walls of the ruins? Were you one of the Turned, who I sent to the mercy of beyond with tears in my eyes?

I am the Chozo's Hope. If they are ever to rest in peace, I must destroy the Worm, the source of phazon on this planet. This was what I was raised, bred and built for.

"Alright," I hissed as I pointed my gun in the Metroid Prime's direction. "Let's get this over with."

The creature bellowed in rage at my defiance. It charged. I rolled into the morph ball to avoid being tackled, although the minor quake from its passing shook me up quite a bit. The Prime's exoskeleton changed into a shade of purple, which my scan visor told me was currently vulnerable to electric attacks. I blasted it with the triple wave beam from my arm cannon and watched it reel in pain.

The battle was more about endurance than mere power. The sheer number and variety of its attacks were incredible; I found myself jumping and rolling to avoid them most of the time, unable to find even a moment of respite. But as I grew more accustomed to its pattern of attack, I became able to predict its next move and launch my own offence accordingly. Slowly, but surely, I chipped away at each layer of the Metroid Prime's armor as it grew more vicious and desperate in its attacks.

"SKREEEE!!!" The abomination recoiled with a shot of the ice spreader. I crouched and readied another shot, but the creature's insect legs suddenly buckled beneath it. I lowered my gun and watched with bated breath. Did I win?

With great difficulty, the Metroid Prime slammed through a thin wall and fell into a hole on the other side. I counted a full eight seconds before I felt a dull tremor beneath my feet, indicating that the creature had reached the bottom. Cautiously, I leaned my head forward to look down on the pit. It was deeper and blacker than the depths of space. It reached out to engulf me. I jumped in.

I landed nimbly after an eternity of freefall and looked up. Instead of pure darkness, faint blue light emanated from phazon rocks in the walls. And there, twisted and broken in the corner, lay the remains of the Metroid Prime. It bled phazon; the energy of it crackled with intensity.

I took a step towards the corpse when a section of the exoskeleton suddenly broke off. I jumped back in surprise, holding my gun at ready. A translucent tentacle-like appendage emerged from the Prime's shell, followed by five more just like it. They clawed and shoved at the exoskeleton until, with one joint effort, they pulled their body out of its prison.

I couldn't help but gasp. Here was the Metroid Prime free of its external skin of machinery, exposed as a purely organic creature. For one delirious moment, I thought I was back on Zebes, facing the Mother Brain. This creature vaguely resembled that vile Space Pirate leader.

The Metroid Prime's brain/nuclei/whatever was clearly visible through its transparent flesh and amounted for a large portion of its body. It had a hauntingly human face with the same red eyes that once stared out at me from within its mechanical armor. Six flexible tentacles radiated in six separate directions. It didn't look as dangerous as its previous form, but it stank of phazon.

The Metroid Prime took a chance swipe at me with one of its tentacles which I easily jumped over. Upon landing, I quickly pivoted on one foot and launched the ice spreader at the creature's head, thinking that it would work like with most metroids. Who was I kidding; it wasn't particularly helpful against fission metroids and it didn't even cause the Prime to wince. In fact, I doubt this abomination was even a real metroid. I believe this was something else altogether with metroid DNA fused into its own genetic structure.

I threw everything I had at it: power bombs, flamethrower, wave buster and every charge beam in my arsenal. My options eventually narrowed down to running away or trying to physically damage the creature, which I suspected would do more harm than good. There was still one previously untested weapon I could use: the phazon beam, complementary with my phazon suit, courtesy of the Omega Pirate. But it came with a catch: it could only be used in the presence of 'concentrated phazon', whatever that's supposed to mean.

I lept over a ring of plasma quake which the Metroid Prime sent in my direction. Taking advantage of the moment, I quickly switched to the scan visor and examined the room around me. None of the phazon on the walls was capable of powering the hyper beam. Dammit, even the stuff still gushing out of Prime's discarded skin wouldn't work.

I turned my attention back to the Metroid Prime. It had all of its tentacles extended in front of it, converging to a point. I expected some new form of attack but to my surprise, the appendages contracted in unison, oozing out phazon from the tips. Then the creature disappeared.

"...the hell?!" I yelled out loud. I looked to my left, then my right, searching for any trace the Metroid Prime. I turned slowly in a full circle, gun arm ever ready. My attention focused back on the pool of phazon it left behind, on which my scan visor almost instantly relayed back a blurb of information.

My eyes lit up with interest. "Well, isn't that convenient." I said to myself. The Metroid Prime had just left me a pile of 100, unadulterated, bona fide phazon. And leaving Samus alone with a pool of phazon was not gonna be one of the healthiest choices this thing had ever made.

"Aaagh!" A plasma quake came out of nowhere and knocked me back into the wall. The searing violence of the attack was felt by every cell in my body, rendering me breathless until my power suit repaired the damage. I pushed away from the Samus-shaped imprint on the wall and landed on my feet, trying to catch my breath.

How stupid of me. Of course the Metroid Prime was still in here. I just couldn't see it.

I switched to the X-ray visor and scanned the cave for the Prime. It appeared before me as skeleton of veins and neurons, even more transparent than before. I saw it just in time to avoid another one of those plasma quakes.

Keeping my eyes and gun trained on the creature, I backed into the pool of phazon. As soon as my boot touched the viral material, it rose to caress me like some sort of amoeboid lifeform, writhing over my artificial skin. My suit reacted by glowing with an unholy blue light. Phazon infiltrated every square inch of my suit, making me gasp at the sheer power coursing through my mechanical veins. My suit was now in 'Hyper Mode' and phazon replaced the energy in my beam cannon.

The Metroid Prime hovered in right front of me. What a perfect opportunity to test out my new hyper beam.

The first shot launched so much energy out of my gun that I couldn't help but yell, "Hell, YEAH!" at the exhilaration of it all. This beam was so damn powerful! Each blast pushed me back a few inches from the impact, even with my legs braced against the recoil. There was no lag time either; the phazon beam fired as fast as I could initiate the blasts. And when it hit the Metroid Prime, the creature's arms flailed in obvious pain but it couldn't move, paralyzed in a helpless stupor.

The energy from the pool of phazon exhausted itself soon after and the Metroid Prime disappeared again. I couldn't find it with the combat or X- ray visor, but it appeared in brilliant yellow and orange to my thermal vision. The abomination roared and lashed at me with its fiery tentacles. It appeared surprised that I was able to see and jump over them so easily.

The tips of two of those tentacles suddenly broke off and hovered in the air, writhing and taking on the distinct forms of metroids. The Prime quickly regrew its lost body parts and bathed its new creations with phazon, turning them into hunter metroids before my very eyes. Confused over their recent genesis, the metroids turned on me with their most primordial instinct: the need to hunt and feed. I managed to freeze and destroy both of the hunters before their mutated tentacles could find my energy. And meanwhile, the Metroid Prime simply watched, oblivious to the slaughter of its kin.

I've wasted too much time with the hunter metroids and the pool of phazon had almost completely seeped into the soil. I morphed into a ball, boosted over to the phazon, and in one fluid motion, unrolled, pivoted, and aimed. For a split second, the Metroid Prime had a deer-in-headlights expression of shock before I unleashed the hyper beam at it.

The abomination was still screaming when I exhausted the phazon supply at my feet, but it had a different quality to its voice this time. I looked up and realized that it was dying. The Metroid Prime's tentacles writhed and its body shook violently, bleeding, crying and drooling phazon. Without warning, its innards suddenly exploded, but were still contained within its transparent outer covering. The result was this huge, shapeless mass of flesh still quivering with life.

I stared at it in awestruck silence. The gentle glow and movements of the Metroid Prime's new form had an almost hypnotic quality to them, lulling me into carelessness. But in the next moment, the creature turned violent again, shooting out tentacles in every direction. One of which connected right to my stomach! I gasped at the impact. There wasn't much pain, although I expected there to be, but the appendage immediately adhered itself to my suit and tried to drag me towards the main part of its body.

"Argh!" I desperately twisted and fought against the creature's efforts. Yet it drew me ever closer. Finally, with one incredible effort, I tore myself free of the Metroid Prime's grip, but the creature had already assimilated itself with the phazon portions of my power suit. I looked at my hand and realized that I had only my gravity suit left. The phazon suit had been sacrificed as the creature's last meal.

The abomination started growing uncontrollably, almost explosively, making the walls collapse with all the erratic energy being released. "Oh shit," I said to myself, putting one foot in front of the other for balance. This whole chamber was going to cave in, and I'll be buried with it if I don't escape immediately! I turned and ran, not even bothering another glance at the Metroid Prime. I left this perversion of nature to whatever fate awaited it.

Back above ground, in the Artifact Chamber, I thought I could take a brief rest from my ordeal. But when the Chozo statues started falling behind me, I knew I was not safe quite yet. I remotely called in my ship and watched the scene I had made at a distance. The ancient Chozo city fell to ruins before my eyes, fantastic structures toppling in massive explosions. I stood there on the safety of my ship with my helmet removed, wanting to watch the finale of a culture with my own two eyes.

"Are you there, Old Bird?" I whispered into the wind. "Look at me. Your little Hatchling did it. Can you hear me?" I closed my eyes and felt their dampness. I hope the Chozo ghosts here can rest in peace now that the Space Pirates and the Metroid Prime are gone from this world. I have done all that I can. My ship engulfed me and I sped away from Tallon IV, not looking back on the planet until it was but a mere speck in the distance, lost among the multitude of stars.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Samus stepped out of the shower room onto the main deck of the ship with a towel wrapped loosely around her hair. She gazed out the front window and watched her destination, that lonely asteroid, grow ever larger on the screen. She continued standing there, staring, lost in thought, until she started shivering in her nakedness. The bounty hunter grabbed a black leotard from her closet and an Etecoon handed her a vitamin pill which she swallowed dry. She paused for a moment to run a brush through her hair.

Years ago, the Space Pirate population dropped dramatically when Samus reduced Zebes to oh so many bite-sized pieces. They were forced to put their plans of galactic domination on hold while they concentrated on preserving their genetic diversity. Their recent activities have been limited to petty ship pirating on the outskirts of the known universe. However, hunting Space Pirates these days was not a profitable business. They were simply much harder to find now. Having learned from the Hunter's previous attacks on their strongholds, they were now divided into many small, elusive colonies and scattered in every direction. That way, if Samus came around and destroyed a whole colony, there would still be Pirates left elsewhere to perpetuate.

"So they're trying to hide from me." Samus said to no one in particular as she slipped her still-damp skin into the fusion suit. "Come out, come out, wherever you are..." She sang, the last part sounding hollow as the helmet enveloped her head. She rotated her right arm in front of her, watching the beam cannon move with it, imagining what it would do to a Pirate's exposed torso.

Samus's hatred for the Space Pirates was well known, a nurtured, passionate hatred, something which she never bothered to hide. They didn't deserve any of her mercy. They all deserved to die. They will die for killing her parents and making refugees of the Chozo. For their unspeakable experiments on all living things, even themselves. For trying to take over the galaxy. For killing Hatchling. Samus will be laughing when she sent them all to whatever hell awaited them.

She felt the slight change in gravity which indicated that she's on the asteroid's surface. The ship's lights dimmed and a sophisticated cloaking device wrapped around the vehicle, blocking it from all types of sensors. The cloaking technology was actually something Samus installed herself, using technology she learned from the Chozo.

The bounty hunter emerged from the top hatch of her ship, surveying the sparse rock surroundings. She leaped impossibly high into the air, due to the weak gravity, then landed with shocking velocity when her suit adjusted accordingly.

In the distance, there was the faint blue glow of an iris hatch, one commonly used by the Pirates in their bases. It was half-buried with rocks which Samus quickly disposed of with a charge beam blast. The shock also affected the door, which opened its maw, revealing metal innards. The bounty hunter licked her bottom lip, then cocked her gun and walked inside.


	10. Chapter 10

Somewhere in the back of my fuzzy mind, I think I can't feel my left arm. I remember it hurting so very much before, but now I don't feel anything. That made me curious enough to open my eyes and take a look at it. What I saw was just blood, lots of blood, and something burned black where my arm should have been.  
  
My eyes were as big as disks, wanting to look away but my head would not turn. I wanted to scream. To scream and scream and scream and never stop but my throat closed up and all I can do was gasp. Then I remembered. I remembered the fire and the running and the yelling all over the place. Those people that I know who I have never seen cry were crying. Mommy was crying. I was crying.  
  
But mommy told me to be brave. That's what she told me before she locked me in the flotsam box, all dark and alone. I waited for her to come back but there was a big noise then the box shook so bad that it knocked me out. Now I am here. Where am I? There is blood in my eyes and I can't see too clearly.  
  
I know that I'm losing a lot of blood. I remember hearing somewhere that you can lose so much blood that you can faint. And you die if you don't get new blood soon. But I don't really care anymore. If I die, then maybe I'll see daddy. I saw daddy die when one of those aliens with claws jumped on him, spraying blood everywhere.  
  
I heard footsteps coming towards me, so I became very, very still, just in case it's one of those aliens. Maybe if I'm still and quiet, it won't notice me and go away. It came closer, and held out its clawed hand in front of me. But this claw was not like the clamp-claws of those aliens who attacked my home. It was like a human hand with bird-like claws instead of fingernails. It touched my burnt arm gently, so gently that the claws didn't even catch onto my skin.  
  
A bunch of those creatures came into the room and I was very afraid. I was too scared to move, but later, I found out that I couldn't move even if I tried. I couldn't think clearly. All I could think about was how I'm about to faint from blood loss.  
  
I think that those creatures knew this too, because they used a laser to seal up my cut skin and put cooling salve on my arm. With all the pain gone, I suddenly felt very sleepy and closed my eyes.  
  
I felt a clawed hand on my forehead. "You have to keep awake."  
  
I forced my eyelids open and stared into the deep azure eyes of an alien. "You are very weak with lost blood, Hatchling. If you fall asleep, then you might never wake. Do you understand?"  
  
He spoke in very accented Universal, but I still understood it. I gave him the tiniest of nods and he squawked orders to his friends in another language. He turned back to me. "We are going to give you some blood. This might hurt a little, but it will save your life."  
  
Blood? Blood? There is blood everywhere. On the floor, in my eyes, from my daddy. Why do we need any more blood? My mind was growing feverish. I still wanted to sleep, just for a little while.  
  
Someone brought in a container of blood, but it was not red like human blood. Instead, it was a deep purple with swirls of white, almost like ice cream. I would like some ice cream right now. Mommy used to give me some when I got hurt. And I would get hurt on purpose sometimes if I knew a good flavor of ice cream was in the storage.  
  
The alien stroked my cheek softly, trying to make me feel better. A needle was poked into my left arm and it actually didn't hurt at all. The needle was connected to a tube which was connected to the swirly blood. I wonder what kind of blood it is. I closed my eyes.

....................  
  
"SKREEEAAH!!"  
  
Samus nimbly jumped over two laser shots and sought shelter behind an alloy compartment. The compartment immediately became riddled with smoking holes meant for the bounty hunter. But she didn't care. In fact, she was whistling off-key as she unlocked her beam cannon to allow for the launching of missiles. She stepped out from behind her cover and unleashed a single missile, one which found its target in the Space Pirate's abdomen. The Pirate gave a screaming roar and collapsed, not quite dead yet, but should be within the hour. Samus looked down at the Pirate and saw the pain convulsing over every part of its being.  
  
"Ah, so now you know fear." The bounty hunter said conversationally to her victim. She kneeled down and tore the hand off the Pirate's right arm, the only arm which was left, ignoring the creature's screams of agony. The Federation pays handsomely for these Pirate claws. With the amount she had collected so far, her concerns over munitions and ship fuel would no longer be a problem.  
  
Samus had been wandering aimlessly around the Pirate base for a few hours now, collecting their claws and trying to find the purpose of this operation. So far, this base appeared to be small and insignificant. The Pirates inhabiting this asteroid were curiously soft and few. They didn't expect any intruders and were not armed to oppose any. Some of them were ridiculously inexperienced, unsure about how to aim or even use their weapon. It was actually kind of odd. Every other base Samus had visited in the past always crawled with Pirates armed to the teeth and lusting for her blood. What kind of insignificant facility required such low-quality personnel? Or had the Pirates degraded so much since the destruction of Zebes that they couldn't organize a proper base?  
  
Samus entered the next room and suddenly, all her suspicions about this base disappeared. Because standing on guard before her were two Zebesian Pirates and four shadow Pirates, both formidable versions of her most hated foes. One of them sensed her immediately, twisting its head towards her. It growled a warning, then set all the others roaring in defiance. The shadows activated their cloaking device and charged the Hunter, while the more agile Zebesian Pirates leaped onto the walls, providing their comrades with a cover of laser fire shot from inside their vice-grip claws.  
  
Samus hissed in frustration. She hadn't faced shadow Pirates since her days on Tallon IV, when it was easy to dispose of them with the help of the thermal visor. Unfortunately, the fusion suit came with no such equipment. She couldn't see the shadow Pirates at all except when power surges caused their cloaking device to ripple in the air. There's still an easy way to kill them, but Samus was hesitant about using it. After all, a power bomb blows their bodies into such tiny pieces that their claws can't be collected afterwards.  
  
"Agh!" One of the shadows cut a long gash in Samus's suit with a lethal swipe of its scythe blade. The bounty hunter gasped and backed away, arm pressed over her injury even though it was healing rapidly. She jumped to where she hoped no Pirates were standing, and was hit on the shoulder with a laser beam. Another one passed by so close to her helmet that it caused an electronic disturbance.  
  
That's it. To hell with the bounty, Samus was going to make sure these Pirates ended up very, very dead. She curled into a morph ball and dropped one of the devastating power bombs, waiting for the Pirates to come closer. The bomb beeped a few times, flashing in warning, then bathed the entire room in blinding light. The four shadow Pirates nearest to the bomb had just enough time to scream before they became indistinguishable from the product of a meat grinder. The two Zebesian Pirates weren't hit with the full impact of the blast, although one of them fell to the floor, shrieking, with blood pouring from its mouth and eyes.  
  
The other Space Pirate jumped off the wall and stood in front of the door to the next room. It started shooting an endless supply of lasers at Samus, either bravely or foolishly. It seemed desperate to guard whatever was behind that door. The bounty hunter fired an ice beam at it, then shattered the Pirate with one well-placed missile.  
  
Samus wondered what could be so important in the next room. It must contain the main purpose of this facility if it was guarded so well. She activated the hatch with her beam cannon and was about to enter, when the cries of the remaining Zebesian Pirate distracted her. She turned back to it.  
  
Damn. She's getting sloppy. It's not usual for Samus to leave any survivors, especially those of the Space Pirate variety. Oh well. She'll have to put an end to its misery, although she would love nothing more than to prolong it. Other than Ridley and Mother Brain, it was Zebesian Pirates that she hates the most. They were a breed of Pirates created on Zebes soon after their conquest of that planet. They desecrated Zebes's surface, destroying all the native life and mutating what was left. They killed thousands of Chozo, forcing the pitiful few remaining to wander the stars until death. Even their very names, 'Zebesian Pirates', were an insult to the creatures who were actually natives of Zebes.  
  
The power bomb was not close enough to the Pirate to cause any damage to its exoskeleton, but the weaker cartilage between joints were hit with enough force to cause massive internal injuries. Samus kneeled down beside her victim, head cocked in an almost curious manner. The Pirate raised its arm and clamped her head in its pincer claws, trying to squeeze hard enough to crush her skull. She let it try, but it was too weak to even scratch the helmet. She laughed out loud, taunting her victim even more. She pointed her beam cannon at its head.  
  
The Pirate's arm went slack, realizing its helplessness in the face of the bounty hunter. "Please, Hunter." It suddenly pleaded. "Do what you want to me, but please don't go into that room! I beg you!"  
  
Samus raised an eyebrow, surprised that this Pirate had spoken to her in Universal. She thought only Ridley and Mother Brain ever bothered to learn the languages of other species. Furthermore, this Pirate was begging for mercy! They never beg for mercy, considering how they never give any of their own. Curiosity piqued, the bounty hunter lowered her gun but kept alert, just in case this turned out to be some sort of trick.  
  
"Why?" Samus replied. "What could be so important to you that it'd be worth your life? Not that you have long to live."  
  
The Pirate drew back its teeth in hatred. It answered with a question of its own. "Why do you want to kill us, Hunter? We are now just another small, weak species in the galaxy. We haven't done anything to you for years."  
  
"'Why do you want to kill us?'" Samus echoed. She barked out a laugh. "For the bounty, of course!" She stroked her victim's face roughly, making it cringe. Her hand ran down the Pirate's shoulder and arm until it rested on the lobster-like claw. "Your claws are worth their weight in platinum." She said in a soft whisper.  
  
"You lie." The Pirate coughed and gurgled, unable to talk properly with so much blood coming out of its mouth. "You never show any interest in our cargo even though it is worth more than Pirate hands. And you never leave our bases until you have killed as many of us as you can find. So you are not interested in the money. You have another reason for wanting to kill us."  
  
Samus was suddenly enraged beyond description. With one violent jerk, she wrenched her victim's claw free from the wrist, leaving it weeping fluid and tendons. The Pirate wailed.  
  
"You want to know the truth, you piece of shit?" Samus snarled. She threw the claw to the side. "You're right, I was never in it for the money. Ever heard of a little place called K2-L? Well, of course you haven't. It doesn't exist anymore. You Space Pirates wiped it off the face of the universe. That was my home, you fucking bastard. And you destroyed it. You killed my family! You destroyed my life!" The Pirate writhed on the floor, swimming in a pool of its own blood. "Men, women, children, even harmless animals! You killed them all! Only I survived the massacre, an orphan raised by the Chozo. And even they were homeless because you stole Zebes from them!" Samus was screaming by now, years of suppressed rage and hatred making her tremble with every word. "I will kill you all for what you've done to me! There isn't a day that passes that I don't want to tear you creatures apart with my bare hands!!"  
  
Samus stopped, chest heaving with each gasp of breath. The sudden silence after that outburst left her feeling hollow and drained. She didn't know she still harbored so much pent-up emotion within her, even after all those years.  
  
The Pirate was sprawled on the floor, unmoving save for the faint beating of its heart and laboured breathing. It mustered the energy to twist its neck towards the bounty hunter.  
  
"So you will kill my people for killing your people. I can understand that." The Pirate gave her a mocking smile. "You are very much like us."  
  
Samus stared at the Pirate, lips trembling with half-formed words. Unable to stand looking at the creature any longer, she raised her gun and shot it through the neck.


	11. Chapter 11

The lonely, monotonous corridors of the Space Pirate base offered Samus nothing but the companionship of her own metallic footsteps. So far, she hadn't encountered any life beyond the door the Pirates were guarding, nor did she discover anything of significance. She had left those alien corpses far behind already, abandoning them to become fodder for parasites of this little space colony. But she was more uncomfortable and paranoid than she remembered being in years. It was the words of that last Zebesian Pirate which unnerved her, hissing at the edges of her consciousness. She had incinerated every trace of that Pirate's body with her plasma beam, but she still wasn't able to shake its voice from her mind.

"You are very much like us," The Zebesian had said. Was she really that similar to the Pirates? All this time, she's never stopped to compare her actions to those of her enemies. A part of her doesn't want to and instead wants to believe that the Pirates are an unspeakable evil necessary for the universe to be rid of. That's what she's believed all her life. It's easier that way. They are the bad guys. She's the good guy.

Actually, the aggression and intelligence of Space Pirates had always been a mystery. To the disbelief of many, it turned out that they evolved as herbivores back on their home planet. Heck, even the Chozo eat more meat than they do. How the Pirates acquired such a thirst for dominance was a riddle that still eludes the most clever of researchers. Some believe that they were heavily preyed upon in the past and developed a killer's instinct to defend themselves. Others claim that they were part of a relentless hive community that grows without end. When they overran their own planet, they sought out others to conquer. By now, they have modified their bodies so much that no one knows or remembers what they originally looked like.

The hallway opened into a room which had an iris hatch sealed by a thick metal grate on the far end. Computer terminals littered the sides of the walls, one of them obviously containing the mechanism for opening the door. The bounty hunter scanned the monitors one by one until the metal grate withdrew into the wall, leaving the hatch open and waiting. She took two steps into the room and abruptly stopped.

She felt something watching her. Years of experience taught her to trust her intuition at times like these. With one fluid motion, she whirled on her heel and fired three beams at the camera right above the hallway she just entered. It exploded in a bright flash of sparks. The whirr of machinery suddenly started up and intensified, making the ground shake.

It's a trap! Samus tried to run back into the hallway, but an electric barrier formed at her approach, encircling the perimeter of the room like an arena, stretching upwards until it disappeared into the ceiling.

"Aw, damn it." She muttered. These sort of things seem to be designed especially to get on her nerves. There was a blinking red light on the ceiling which was probably part of another camera. Samus waved her gun arm at it.

"Alright, you got me." She said wearily. "Let's cut to the chase already, I'm getting sick of these games."

As soon as she said this, a section of the ceiling exploded and something heavy dropped onto the computer terminals, rendering them a mess of wires and sparks. Samus backed away, one hand instinctively shielding her eyes from all the dust and flying shards. From the heap of slag rose a clawed hand, followed by a pair of leathery wings, a tail, then finally, a pointed head which snarled at her, wisps of flame escaping its mouth.

The bounty hunter inhaled sharply through her bared teeth. "Ridley!!" She began charging her plasma beam. "How many times do I have to kill you, you bastard!?"

The Pirate leader did not reply, but lunged at her with jaws open more than 90 degrees. Samus threw herself to the side, releasing a searing blast that can vaporize steel. It hit Ridley on the wing, melting it slightly. He casually flapped it cool and turned back to his prey.

Wait a minute. Samus took a closer look at the Space Pirate and realized that it wasn't Ridley at all. He didn't have the dragon's reptilian anatomy, but an insectoid exoskeleton structure much like every other Pirate. The wings and tail don't look like natural structures, but like artificially grown body parts which were later fused onto its back. The head could be the result of skeletal restructuring or it might even be a mask. This creature was simply a new variation of Space Pirate.

The Pirate paused for a moment, as surprised at Samus's appearance as she was to his. In all his training and education, he had never seen the Hunter as she appeared to him now, in the fusion suit. It was definitely her he's facing, but wasn't she supposed to be a monster of metal and technology? She was strangely...organic. There wasn't a single mechanically straight line on her body, except for the rim of her visor. And her suit folded at the joints like natural skin rather than layered metal. He was confused, and he felt a twinge of fear suppressed within him begin to surface.

Samus peppered the winged Pirate with plasma beams until he responded with a fiery blast of his own. She dodged, but the bounty hunter discovered his fireball was also laced with an electric pulse. It disrupted her visor long enough for him to swipe at her with his claws. She curled into a morph ball and rolled out of the creature's immediate vicinity, then dropped a power bomb. The Pirate rolled into a ball himself, simply by tucking in his arms, legs and head and wrapping his wings around himself. It protected him from the blast, although it knocked him on his side. He scrambled into a charge position on all fours, circling the Hunter, swishing his tail.

Samus took this opportunity to scan the Pirate. "Winged Trooper." The transparent words appeared on her visor. "The Winged Trooper was the result of the Space Pirates trying to recreate their most efficient commander, Ridley. Though not nearly as powerful or intelligent as the creature it was modeled from, it has a number of creative features to aid in its defense, such as the ability to expel electricity from its mouth, and the ability to shed and reattach its own wings and tail if the need arises."

The Trooper twisted his body quickly, swinging his tail in Samus's direction. She dropped to the floor deliberately to avoid the vicious lash, landing heavily on her stomach. She looked up, and immediately rolled to the side, barely avoiding the Pirate's beak as it slammed down through the floor where she was a second ago. He jerked his head up and forced it downwards again, then again, like some demented bird pecking at a speedy morsel of food. The bounty hunter morphed into ball mode and propelled herself up a fallen terminal, using it as a ramp to escape gravity. Uncurling midair, she unleashed two ice beams at her opponent, one which hit the side of his head and quickly melted, the other forming crystals of solid ice at the base of his wing. He roared in pain.

Samus landed gracefully and regarded her handiwork. The ice would slow the Pirate enough for her to get in some charged shots and end this stupid game. The Winged Trooper realized this as well, but sneered at the bounty hunter, defiant still.

"Rucordith varmrudkerinomithn ulychah'heteh!" The Pirate spat.

Samus smiled. "Yeah? I know you are but what am I?" Actually, she had no idea what the Trooper just said. Taking careful aim, she pointed her beam cannon at the Pirate, bright flashes of energy collecting at the nozzle.

But before she could fire, the creature suddenly charged at Samus with unexpected speed, leaving behind its ice-cased wings. "What the...!!" Without the wings, he was faster than a Shadow Pirate! He had her arm in its jaws before she could react and tossed her into the electric barrier with a forceful snap of his neck.

"AAAH!!" The bounty hunter shrieked upon impact with the force field. The electricity propelled her backward and she landed in a twisted heap on the floor. When her vision finally cleared, she saw the Pirate melting the ice layered on its discarded appendages and reattaching them to his shoulder. He took a few trial flaps, then turned his attention back to Samus. He was surprised to see her rise to her feet so soon after that electric shock.

Samus was sweating and shaking from the after-effects of hitting that barrier. Her fusion suit worked overtime to repair her frayed nerve endings. Her tongue flicked across her bottom lip as she watched the Pirate watch her, both analyzing each other. The bounty hunter silently chided herself for being so careless.

The Winged Trooper made the first move, leaping up into the air and shooting fire from his lofty position. Samus joined him using the screw attack, trying to lacerate him with her energy blades and taking care not to hit the force field. The Pirate kicked her, but that had no effect. Similarly, the screw attack only managed to push the Trooper back a little, causing no damage. The two duelers landed simultaneously, both realizing that their airborn attacks won't work on each other.

The Pirate shed his wings again, bone, muscle and sinew simply falling away from his back with a sickening tearing sound. Two raw patches of flesh appeared where the wings once were, gently oozing thick blood where the exoskeleton doesn't provide protection. Without the burden of extra appendages, he was suddenly all over Samus, kicking, biting, slashing, and whipping with his tail.

"You think you're so smart?" She grunted after enduring a powerful kick to the torso. She suddenly rolled into a morph ball, causing the Pirate to overshoot his next kick. By the time he recovered, he saw Samus speeding away as a ball and a blinking power bomb at his feet.

The Pirate froze in shock, realizing his fatal error. Without his wings there to protect him, he was about as vulnerable to the power bomb as a melon to the force of a hammer. The eventual blast sent him careening off his feet and crashing onto the floor with a wet thud, his own blood splashed in a grotesque starburst around him. The Trooper's screaming reached a delirious pitch as he clutched his stump of an arm. The tip of his upper beak was missing, as was his tail and many teeth.

From a distance, Samus unfurled from the morph ball, breathing heavily, watching her victim writhe. Well, that was a battle she wouldn't care to repeat. It left her feeling more drained than she could remember being in a long time, although she had fought harder battles in the past. She let herself rest for a moment, allowing the fusion suit time to recover itself. Now she would have to figure out how to get through the force field. She took a step forwards, then her legs abruptly buckled and she fell to the floor.

The bounty hunter was confused at first, wondering what malfunction caused her to trip. But then she tried to move her fingers, and found that they would not respond to her command. Realization dawned on her.

"Oh no..." She gasped in a hoarse whisper. "No! Not now!" She couldn't move. The illness! Oh God, why did she have to have a relapse at a time like this?! Right in the middle of the Pirate base! Her eyes rapidly scanned the vital signs of her suit, but found nothing out of the ordinary. Her energy levels were safe enough, life support was normal, and her weapons were all in working order, that is, if only she was able to activate them. This weak spell was more severe than any she had previously experienced, and it came without warning. She felt a sense of dread rise up within her.

The Trooper ignored his own pain long enough to notice Samus sprawled motionless on the surface of the floor. How did that happen? He didn't care. He knew he was dying. But if he could kill the Hunter now, then he would have completed his duty of protecting what lies beyond the door and ensured the eventual dominance of the Space Pirates. His comrades might even see him as being valuable enough to preserve and revive, as they have done with Ridley and Mother Brain. He crawled forwards slowly, agonized moans escaping his mouth with each movement.

Samus couldn't believe what was happening. She was going to die. Fallen to this goddamn disease and her entrails to be ripped out of her body by Space Pirate claws then hung like wreaths in celebration of their victory. Unable to move her head, she couldn't even see the Trooper as he drew near. But she heard his dragging feet, his labored breathing. Finally, he entered her field of vision, but even that was soon obscured by his blood dripping onto her visor.

The Space Pirate's conventional weapons had been damaged, but he had other ways of dealing with a victim. He crawled on top of Samus, keeping her motionless with his weight in case she suddenly comes back to life again. His remaining arm leaned especially hard on her right hand where she carried the beam cannon. He positioned his open mouth on either side of her head so she could see his tongue and the inside of his esophagus. Then he squeezed.

The bounty hunter felt the pressure of the Pirate's crushing jaws not through her own skin, but through the skin of her power suit, which extended to the nerves of her body. But if the protective helmet was penetrated, then the Trooper would find her own head in his jaws which was much more fragile in comparison. Samus could barely breath with his weight on top of her. His steaming breath formed droplets of condensation on her visor. She closed her eyes...

...And when she opened them, she saw the world in a way she's never seen it before. There was no metal, force field, Space Pirate, or anything else. This was a simple world divided into only two existences: energy, and non- energy. There was electric energy all around her, but that was no good. There was energy on top of her. That was good. She herself was made out of energy. Energy. Lots of it to spare.

Samus jerked her left arm from underneath the Winged Trooper and slashed at him with her forearm blades, leaving bloody gashes even on his hard exoskeleton. The Pirate screeched in surprise but did not let go of her head. She grabbed the top of his muzzle and forced his head to rotate, completely disregarding the deep grooves she made on her own helmet from the Pirate's relentless teeth. His head was at a good angle now, jaws clamped at the front and back of her head rather than at the temples. She opened her mandibles and drove them deep into the Pirate's bottom jaw.

"SKREEEAH!!" The Space Pirate's scream made Samus's head vibrate, and he jerked away so fast that she lost her hold on him. He was suddenly terrified; the pain was beyond anything he had ever experienced. He tried to get away.

Samus stood up, feeling none of her previous weakness. Her mandibles twitched in agitation; she was furious beyond comprehension at the loss of her prey. It would not happen again. She charged at the whimpering Pirate and lunged headfirst when she got close enough, knocking him over. She sank her fangs into his neck, wrapped her legs around his torso, and plunged her blades deep into his chest so he would have to rip out his own ribcage if he wanted to get her off him.

Screeching, the Trooper slashed, rolled, begged, and even ran into the electric barrier a few times in attempt to shake the Hunter off him. She would not let go. Finally, he fell from exhaustion and simply laid there shivering until the last of his energy was siphoned from him.

The bounty hunter released the carcass, noting how all of his energy was gone. She also noted that the force field was gone. But beyond the open hatch, she sensed lots of energy, potentially of the edible variety. It's been weeks since her last good meal, and if it will be weeks again, then she'd better get her fill right now. She walked eagerly through the door.

The room on the other side of the hatch glowed with a faint blue light. Transparent cylinders of wildly varying sizes were arranged in orderly rows within this chamber, all of them filled to the brim with liquid nutrients. And all of them containing a developing Space Pirate larvae. There were many variations of Pirates, such as Zebesian, Shadow, Troopers including Winged Troopers, and a few that Samus had never seen before. They were in various stages of development and some of them even had their eyes open. They stared at the bounty hunter in helpless terror, shrinking back into the corners of their artificial womb.

So this was why this chamber was so well protected. It was a center for research on new sub-species of Space Pirate and a place to raise their young in vitro. Their nurseries have always been of great importance to them ever since their females became extinct. But it was now even more precious with their rapidly declining population.

Samus sliced through the nearest cylinder with her left arm, spilling its contents onto the floor. A Pirate fetus about the size of a human child fell out, still attached to its bio-mechanical umbilical cord. It made a weak chirp of protest as it was picked up, kicking blindly with its underdeveloped feet. Samus's mandibles clicked against her visor in anticipation. This child was a far cry from its adult counterparts, being so weak and helpless. But at least its heart was beating. And that would be enough to satisfy her.


	12. Chapter 12

It was only hours, but it felt like days had passed before Samus finally awoke from the world of energy. She felt a little confused as her eyes opened, as if she had woken from a dream or a nightmare and was not sure which one she had actually experienced. Then she saw the bodies, and memories flooded back. Carcasses were strewn all around her, floating silently in the liquid that once nourished them. The memory of those bodies, pressed warm against her thirsty fangs, flared brightly in her mind, horrible and obscene. But mostly, she remembered how much she enjoyed killing them. It was an ecstasy unlike anything she had ever experienced; it was sex and cocaine and the rapture of the stars and so much more all in an instant. Then she ran out of victims. And reality again took its hold.  
  
She became panicked. She wanted to throw up. Instead, she ran out of the nursery as fast as she could, wanting to put as many miles as she could between herself and this scene of slaughter. The hatch opened before her, allowing the flooded room to spill some of its contents into the next chamber. Samus passed the Winged Trooper, whose body still bled from various wounds. She ran. It felt like she could run forever with all the energy she had acquired.  
  
The bounty hunter practically flew through chamber after chamber, completely ignoring everything around her, desperate to get back to the ship. She suddenly stopped at the door to the homeostatic control center, breathing hard, considering. Her eyes hardened and she made a decision about what she must do. She went through the door and laid power bombs over everything that looked important, reducing the entire room to a hellish inferno with a few fantastic blasts. Without the control center, all the base's essential functions shut themselves down, rendered obsolete. Air began seeping out into the hungry void, depriving all that's living of oxygen. Pirates choked, gasping but drawing in nothing when they inhaled. They flailed their arms and legs helplessly in midair when the artificial gravity failed, as if they were drowning in invisible water. The base itself grew hotter with each passing moment, scorched by the nearest star and lacking the thermal shielding that once protected its inhabitants.  
  
Samus registered none of this through her protective second-skin. The fusion suit kept her feet on the ground and her lungs from imploding. But there was no power going to the doors, so she had to manually push them open and hop through the half-open hatches as a morph ball. She shoved her way past the last door and scrambled up the hatch to her ship in record time.  
  
The Dachoras and Etecoons were shocked awake by Samus falling through the ceiling. They watched from a distance as she tore off her helmet with a gasp and flung it against the wall. It hit the floor and spun a few times, then stared straight ahead, upside-down, its mandibles now mute. Samus tore at the opening at the back of her suit and upon escaping from its confines, fled to the washroom.  
  
She filled the sink with water and feverishly rubbed her hands together, trying to get rid of the tingling energy feeling over every part of her skin. She splashed water on her arms and other parts of her body exposed by the leotard. Water pooled at her feet. She dipped her face in the sink and screamed, letting bubbles escape from her mouth and nostrils. Before she ran out of air, she flung her head backwards, water droplets flying everywhere, and scrubbed her face with furious up and down movements of her hands. She could still feel the mandibles of her suit within the fetal Pirates, pulsing with each fading heartbeat, and the syrup-stickyness of nutrient solution clinging to her skin.  
  
Eventually, her motions slowed, her body exhausted physically and mentally. She ran her hands down her face one last time, starting from the hairline, slowly over the forehead to the eyebrows, fingers delicately caressing the pliable eyelids, around the nose ridge, catching the parted bottom lip, finally stopping at the chin and jawbone. She felt not a single rough edge on her unblemished skin. Samus stared at the mirror in front of her and her reflection stared back. What she saw was a woman with wet, mussed hair and a hint of madness in her eyes. Water droplets speckled the image.  
  
"What is happening to me?" She whispered to her reflection. The image mouthed the words back at her. Unable to stand herself any longer, Samus retreated to the warmth of her bed and buried herself in the blankets.  
  
And so the bounty hunter stayed there for almost two days. Sometimes she'd sleep, but most of the time she's awake, endlessly pondering her actions on that Space Pirate base. Confusion and doubt wracked her mind. What is happening to her? First it was that man in the alley, and now the Winged Trooper and all the infant Pirates. She didn't know how she killed them, nor was she able to control herself when she did. She was conscious during those times and her memory of the events were clear, but while they happened, it seemed as if Samus was but a mere bystander to the actions of her own body, detached and uncaring. Except for the rush of pleasure. Even now, when she imagined herself drinking the liquid energy of her victims, she would sweat and her heart would beat faster in anticipation. It was hard to forget such an intoxicating feeling, even if it was always followed by pangs of guilt and disgust. She thought about the slaughter of the Pirate children the most. Just like that Zebesian Pirate had said, had she, by hating and killing the Pirates, become one of them? She killed the helpless and innocent, just as the Pirates did on K2-L all those years ago.  
  
Why did this have to happen. The more she thought about it, the more convinced she became that her condition had something to do with the fusion suit. None of this ever happened before the incident on B.S.L. laboratory, when she became infected by the deadly X. She wished someone would still have an X sample to research on, but they were too dangerous to keep, even in the most secure of enviroments. Sort of like metroids. And also like metroids, they have been annihilated by her own hand. How ironic.  
  
The Dachoras and Etecoons took care of her during this time, feeding her, piloting her ship and cleaning the stains off her suit. They wandered the stars aimlessly and considered their next course of action. They desperately wanted to help their human friend, to whom they owe so much, but she would tell them nothing about what's wrong with her. They didn't know who they could turn to for help. Finally, the mother Dachora recalled something her own mother had drilled into her memory a long time ago. She opened up the map of the known galaxy and was surprised to find the coordinates she was looking for already marked. Yet, according to the ship's log, and salvaged logs from previous ships, Samus had never visited the area. A little perplexed, the Dachora plotted the course to their next destination.

........................  
  
Fighting Ridley was never a task to be taken lightly, even though it was the fourth time I've faced him. But this time, he was only a hollow shell of his former self, a puppet without a soul. I recalled the memory of his carcass encased in ice and how it collapsed, revealing the parasite within him. He did not taunt me as he always did while we fought, and that in itself was unnerving. He screeched, a combination of his own roaring voice and the high-pitched squeal of the X. That sound stayed with me, echoing in my ears as I traveled the core of SRX, trying to find a way to escape this sector.  
  
I suddenly stopped in the middle of an atmospheric stabilizer room. I have been here before, when the computer ordered me to purge the area of X. But there was something different about the room this time. There were no X to be found, and a discarded metroid shell lay exposed in the middle of a clearing, glistening like a gem. I ventured towards it cautiously and tested the texture of the membrane between two fingers. It was still soft, as if recently shed.  
  
So. One of the metroids from the restricted sector had escaped into SRX. It was growing extremely quickly, nurtured by this replica of its natural enviroment and feasting on the abundant X which were once rare on its home planet.  
  
I sighed and moved on. The metroids never seem to completely die out, no matter how many times the official reports said they did. I couldn't help thinking that some higher power was at work, keeping the metroids entwined with my destiny, forever taunting me for losing Hatchling.  
  
Finally, I reached a navigation room and wearily wondered what my mechanical CO would order me to do next. I had named this computer Adam, after a human CO from my past, yet I do not to trust it. It was a mindless, emotionless machine programmed to be a minion of the Federation, whose morals I find questionable. After all my years of working for them, I find out that they were secretly breeding metroids right under my nose. Adam claims that the metroids were for 'peaceful application'. Maybe so, but how am I supposed to believe that with all the other dangerous organisms they keep aboard the space station? The security robot, the Nightmare, even Ridley and the Space Pirates! And they expect me to believe that all those creatures were kept there for academic curiosity? What a fallacy. Militaristic and power-hungry, the Federation was as corrupt as any large- scale political organization. But, for the moment, I had no choice but to follow them. I opened a link to my ship and stared at the plain text words that appeared in front of me.  
  
"Samus, we're done here. Leave the rest to the Federation..." The computer informed me abruptly. "We should be preparing to evacuate the station..."  
  
I was taken aback by these turn of events. I had expected some new mission, some new weapon to download, some fruitless new strategy to defeat the X. Yet, no matter how difficult the mission, I was the only person who could survive on this station, for no other person alive could withstand the X parasites. To send humans here would be an act of suicide.  
  
"Are you joking?!" I yelled to the monitor in disbelief. How could those idiots at headquarters be so naive? "Do they know how dangerous the X are? ...How quickly they reproduce?"  
  
"The Federation has taken an interest in the X and the SA-X. They believe this life-form has endless potential applications."  
  
"This is ridiculous!" I exclaimed. "The X are heartless abominations! What potential could they have ?"  
  
My words were fed into the computer and translated into data, mere information to be processed and interpreted by this machine. "It is not necessary that you understand such matters. The Federation is coming now. You should just leave quietly..."  
  
Of course the ship would not hear me out. If only it would listen to reason! "This is madness! They won't stand a chance here! This station will devour them! What could be worth the risk!?"  
  
"Capturing the SA-X, of course." Came the calculated reply.  
  
That rendered me speechless for a moment. A sick feeling of disgust wormed down my insides. "...Are you serious? Do they really think they can succeed?" My hatred for the SA-X ran deep, almost on an instinctive level. I wished to kill that lethal doppleganger of mine, whose creation was partly my doing. But if I, bounty hunter Samus Aran, can not even face the SA-X in battle, how the hell are normal Federation soldiers supposed to capture it?  
  
"It will certainly be difficult." The computer said calmly, as if it was referring to some unfinished paperwork rather than the lives of real people. "They don't expect your help. They knew you would try to destroy the SA-X... That's why they stopped sending you support data... The Plasma Beam modification was ready some time ago, but they withheld it to keep you form engaging the SA-X. Yet somehow you restored that function on your own... They also tried to withhold the Diffusion Missile upgrade because they didn't want you to grow too powerful. But they had already sent it, and you tracked it down... Bravo, Samus."  
  
Holy shit. This has been a conspiracy against me from the very beginning. I took a breath through my mouth and resisted the urge to drive my fist through the monitor."They must cancel this mission! Open a channel to HQ! I won't let this happen!"  
  
"They are already on their way."  
  
"Fools..." As soon as the Federation ships land, the X will overwhelm them and absorb the knowledge and power of their occupants. The X are just waiting for the hunt to begin, and then they'll spread across the universe. Galactic civilization will end. The X hunger for form, knowledge, and power. They mimic these perfectly. But they cannot copy the soul. They're single-minded, instinctively seeking to increase in number. They're a plague, and the Federation underestimates their threat. The X must not leave here. I must destroy them all before the Federation arrives. This station has a self-destruct mechanism. I must use it to destroy the X here and on the planet. I must send them to oblivion. Them, the station, and myself, if I have to.  
  
The navigation screen winked shut and without hesitation, I ran for the hatch. It did not open at my approach, nor did it respond when I shot at it with my beam cannon. Frustrated, I pounded the door with my fist. I could not get out. That damn computer trapped me in here!  
  
I reestablished communications to the ship. "Open the hatch!" I demanded.  
  
"I have been ordered to confine you until the ships arrive."  
  
Furious, desperate, my mind scrambled for something, anything, that would convince this computer to let me go. "Don't let them do this. Can't you see what will happen, Adam?"  
  
There was a pause. "...Adam?"  
  
"........." It was a mere slip of the tongue. I had been thinking of him, that human who had been the most calculating person I had ever met, and the most dutiful. I had been thinking about what he would do in this situation.  
  
"...Who is Adam?"  
  
"...A friend of mine." My words were short and clipped. Who does this computer think it is, prying into my personal life?  
  
"And what would this...friend advise you to do now?"  
  
That was an odd question for a mechanical entity to ask. I didn't know computers had a sense of curiosity. Or was it searching for some piece of information I had? I chose my words carefully. "He would know that the only way to end this is to start the self-destruct cycle. He'd know how important it is..."  
  
"Did this 'Adam' care for you? Would he sit in a safe Command Room and order you to die?"  
  
I licked my lips and kept my voice steady. "He would understand that some must live and some must die... He knew what it meant. He made that sacrifice once." My last memories of Adam came flooding back, reopening sealed wounds. The memories were almost too painful to touch. But how did the ship know what happened to him in his last moments? Or was it just guessing? There was something about its dialogue that I was missing.  
  
"So, he chose life for you? Our fair warrior, Samus Aran... Your Adam gave his life so that you might keep yours... For the sake of the universe..."  
  
No, that was wrong. Adam never did anything like that. Although... if he did, he might still be alive today. I remained silent, waiting for the computer to continue.  
  
"How foolish." Those pixelated words appeared on the screen, toneless, yet mocking me and the memory of Adam.  
  
"How dare you!" I screamed, ready to give this computer's wiring a taste of my wave beam. "How could you hope to understand, machine?"  
  
Ignoring me, it continued to speak in that infuriating text. "You know that detonating this station in high orbit would not guarantee the complete extinction of the X parasites even though the station would be utterly destroyed... You would only succeed in removing the one obstacle to this galaxy's ruin... yourself. You would ignore this simple fact and choose death."  
  
I lowered my weapon and stared at the monitor, puzzled. What was the computer talking about? Whose side is it on? It continued. "When Adam decided who would live, he chose incorrectly."  
  
Oh my God! This machine really knew what happened to Adam! But how?!  
  
"...If you were to alter the station's orbit, then you might be able to include the planet in the vaporization field of the self-destruct detonation."  
  
I held my breath, waiting, not daring to hope. What was it implying...?  
  
"You would have to start the propulsion sequence now. Before the Federation arrives. Samus, this is your last mission. Go to the Operations Room and adjust the station's orbit to intercept SR388. Then return to your ship and escape."  
  
That was when I knew. This was not just a simple computer that I was talking to. No computer would ever disobey orders this far. It was Adam. He has come back! I don't know how, I don't know why, but somehow my former CO leads me still, his mind and memories now contained in a computer. Stunned speechless, I couldn't decide what to say to him. I wanted to tell him how much I've missed him, and how sorry I was for disobeying his last orders. But there was no time for sentiments. Adam knew this, and kept up his gruff exterior. For him, duty always comes first.  
  
"Move quickly and stay alive. That's an order!" There was a pause, and I could almost see the corners of his lips lifting in a smile. "Any objections, Lady?"  
  
He always used to call me Lady. And now he said it like it was an inside joke between the two of us, a reminder of days when we worked side by side, when the entire galaxy was within our grasp. It was a symbol of our trust. The hatches finally opened and I ran out of the navigation room, ready to complete my mission.


	13. Chapter 13

A lone Zeta metroid wandered the claustrophobic halls of the B.S.L. station, invisible in the shadows save for its six gelatinous eyes. It took a cautious step into the light, awkward on its new hind legs. It might have hovered rather than walked, but the corridors were too narrow for it to float freely. If it had stretched to its full height right then, its head would graze the ceiling. The metroid tested the air with a sense much like smell, but had nothing to do with odors. After all, metroids do not have a respiratory system, meaning they do not need to breathe. But they could still communicate using sounds, somehow emitted from the nuclei deep within their bellies. The metroid made one of those sounds now, a mournful keening, low and high at the same time. It waited but received no answer. That was to be expected. It would be the last metroid in existence.  
  
Ever since the restricted sector had been jettisoned out into space with its fellow metroids, the Zeta had been deprived a companion, forced to wander the unfamiliar landscape alone. It felt abandoned and scared, a mighty predator reduced to the insecurity of a child. Despite appearances, metroids are highly social animals. They require companionship from another like themselves or risk the loneliness and despair of sentient creatures. When all the metroids were freed from their glass prisons, the Zeta, then but a mere larvae, had sensed an odd kinship with Samus Aran. It followed her out of the restricted sector and escaped the fate of the other metroids. But it became separated from her when a hatch locked behind the bounty hunter. By the time the metroid penetrated the door, Samus was gone, and the larvae found itself surrounded by X parasites. It gorged itself on the plentiful food, forgetting its solitary state if only for the moment. As the metroid ate its fill, it shed its skin, growing larger and smarter with each evolution. And hungrier. But the joy of feeding was only temporary. When it could not find any more X to be devoured, it again became overwhelmed by a feeling of absolute loneliness.  
  
The Zeta metroid eventually found the docking bay. There was a single ship parked there, but it flew away at the metroid's approach. The Zeta stared after it, then looked ahead and realized it had reached a dead end. Frustrated and confused, the metroid clawed at the floors and ceilings of the docking bay, almost as if it believed there would be relief from its suffering on the other side. Exhausted, it finally crouched down in a shallow pit of twisted metal of its own making, silent and subdued. It might have stayed like this, motionless, for hours, even days if not for a sudden tightness and irritation on its belly. Following ancient instinct, the metroid flipped itself onto its back, allowing its nucleus to expand and split open the transparent belly membrane. A new creature crawled out of the shell of the Zeta, dripping with fluid from the transition. It flexed its new heavy-duty claws and found that it could turn its neck, a feature which it didn't have previously. It now had a seventh and eighth eye, which swiveled around to admire its thick, armored tail. The newly reborn Omega metroid rolled itself upright, struggling, recovering from the exhausting process of evolution.  
  
As the Omega waited for its full strength to come, it sat quietly, thinking. It thought about all sorts of things that never occurred to it as a Zeta. As the bodies of metroids evolve, so do their minds, which would very suddenly become able to understand things it couldn't even comprehend in its previous form. The Omega was able to understand abstract and complex ideas; it was able to think into the future. It realized that yes, it was the only metroid left, but as long as there is food, then it would eventually evolve into a Metroid Queen. And as a Queen, the energies it gains through eating will no longer be used for evolution, but towards the making of new baby metroids. The Omega dwelled on this vision of the future, happily anticipating a time of contentment as a Queen, surrounded by its many children. It would never be lonely again.  
  
Samus's scent was picked up by the Omega metroid, who eagerly lifted its head. There was something peculiar about her taste, something that discouraged the metroid from thinking of her as food. It thought of her as an equal, or a rival. It might have thought of her as an ally, even a friend, if it had a few more hours to grasp the very concept. As soon as Samus entered the docking bay, the Omega metroid leapt onto its feet and shrieked a challenge at her. Though startled by the appearance of a metroid, the bounty hunter did not back down. Instead, she tried to attack, but her attempts did nothing but convince the Omega that this was a battle for dominance. With a single swipe of its lethal claws, it knocked her clear across the room.  
  
The Omega instantly felt a pang of regret for its actions. It saw how much damage it had done to Samus, so much that she was on the verge of death. It hadn't meant to kill her, only push her around a bit. The metroid jumped backwards and wondered what it could do to to help her in this situation, perhaps as a gesture of forgiveness. Almost as if in answer, a raw CoreX suddenly appeared in front of the Omega and took on physical form. The metroid might have smiled if it was able to do so with the circular ring of teeth which constituted its mouth. The X tried to attack the Omega with damaging ice beams, but it was reduced back to its gelatinous form with a vicious downwards swipe of the predator's claw.  
  
An idea occurred to the metroid. Instead of eating it, the Omega stepped back from the remains of the X and allowed Samus to absorb it. That was a fatal mistake. The bounty hunter was healed instantly and her armor transformed into an orange version of her purple gravity suit. Unexpectedly, her beam cannon was also upgraded to include the ice beam, the only weapon capable of hurting a metroid as powerful as an Omega. She started shooting at the metroid's vulnerable nuclei, freezing the transparent flesh of its belly. The Omega backed away, screeching, all of its eight eyes fixated on the sight of its frozen stomach membrane, shattered and weeping out vital contents. It might have cried if it was able to do so. But there was no time for that, no time for anything but to try and fight back.

........................  
  
Samus was roused awake by a beam of light. At first she ignored it, covering her head with a pillow, keeping herself in the dark although she was unable to return to sleep. Then she realized that the light was natural and quickly sat up. She looked out the front window and saw alien fronds and ferns and even a passing insect crowded on what usually displayed a scene of endless stars. She was no longer in space. Where was she?  
  
There was no immediate danger to her or the ship, so she figured she might complete her morning routine before exploring this place. She got out of bed for the first time in days, curiosity replacing listlessness. Her legs felt stiff from disuse and her mouth tasted stale after days of not brushing her teeth. She stretched and cleaned herself up, starting with one of her long-missed showers and ending with a quiet breakfast. She felt much better after that, much more energized and refreshed. She felt no effects of the weakening disease lingering within her, thanks to the energy acquired from the Space Pirates.  
  
Samus quickly shook that thought off, willing herself to forget about it. She's spent too many days moping in bed to let herself become overwhelmed by regret and confusion again. Besides, the memory...the memory of what happened was already fading in her mind, like a bad dream. If she tried hard enough, she might even be able to convince herself that it never happened.  
  
The bounty hunter suddenly stood up. "Hey!" She called out loud. "Where is everybody?" Her voice echoed slightly in the deserted passageways of her ship. Still not quite with it, she only just noticed that the Etecoons and Dachoras were nowhere to be found. She became increasingly worried about them as she peeked into room after room, calling, hoping they would reply. Visions of what might have happened to them flared in her imagination. Maybe the ship got hijacked and the animals taken and killed. Maybe there was a gas imbalance on the ship that a human can survive, but a Dachora and Etecoon couldn't. Or maybe they found her hidden supply of liquor and were sleeping off the side-effects. In that case, they were soon to be dead anyways.  
  
There was a thump on the front window and Samus instinctively pointed her gun arm at it, although that looked pretty silly without the beam cannon attached. She relaxed when she saw that it was only one of the Etecoons, clinging to the glass with his arms and legs splayed out like a stuffed toy stuck to the back window of a car. It smiled and waved at her. Samus made a face of irritation and cocked her first and middle finger, indicating that he should come back inside. He obliged, crawling up the screen and dropping down through the hatch.  
  
"Alright, spill." Samus demanded of the alien-monkey, putting her hands on her hips. "What's going on? Where exactly are we?"  
  
"Ho oh?" The Etecoon replied. He jumped onto the computer keyboard and pressed a touchpad. The monitor lit up with a million tiny lights, each one representing a single star that made up the extent of the known galaxy. The little alien made the map go 2-D and zoomed in twice on a corner of the screen. He pointed at one inconspicuous little planet.  
  
"Ah. So this is where we are?" Samus called up more information on the planet from the Federation Navigation banks. There wasn't much to see. She found that this world was discovered by a survey ship which simply noted its location and but never bothered to land. It went nameless, referred to simply by its system and its order around its sun. Nothing else was listed.  
  
Well, that wasn't much help. Getting information out of the aliens was always a challenge, especially since they couldn't speak Universal. The bounty hunter had to limit her questions to ones that can be answered through hand motions or simple mime. She turned back to her animal friend. "So where are the other Etecoons? And the Dachoras?" The monkey jumped out of the hatch again and waved and hooted, clearly wanting Samus to follow.  
  
She hesitated, wondering if she should wear her power suit outside. The air was clearly breathable and at a comfortable density, otherwise the Etecoon would be in a state of pain or light-headedness. The gravity seemed tolerable, even optimal, judging from the monkey's easy leaps from tree to tree. Maybe she'll be fine clad with only jeans and a T-shirt. Plus, she was not very enthusiastic about donning her fusion suit again. Even looking at it right now makes her sick to the stomach, what those quivering mandibles did...no, she'll be alright without it today. But she did bring with her a remote for her ship and an all-purpose laser, just in case.  
  
The atmosphere outside was tropical: warm and so humid that you can almost breathe in clouds. Samus's T-shirt clung to her form as soon as she exposed herself to the enviroment. Lush forests of alien design rose to the sky with occasional clearings of mossy growths, one in which the ship was parked in. The air smelled fragrant, not from flowers because there doesn't seem to be any, but apparently from odd cone-like plants that grew wider in circumference as they grew taller. A green, feathery blur ran by the bounty hunter, screeching excitedly. It turned out to be the younger Dachora, who stopped and chirped a welcome to Samus, giving the Etecoon who was chasing him a chance to tackle the bird and win at the game they were playing. The Dachora squawked indignantly and nipped at his playmate's ear.  
  
Samus couldn't help but smile at their antics. Her animal friends seem very much at home on this planet. Perhaps it reminded them of Zebes before the Space Pirates mutilated it beyond recognition. To the bounty hunter, it reminded her mostly of Talon IV but with tamer flora and fauna. In fact, after wandering a bit further, she even ran across a Chozo statue.  
  
What the...!!  
  
She stared at the statue in shock, mind racing yet moving as slow as tar. The statue stared back, silent and regal, with a stone crown of feathers to disguise the wearer's balding head from old age. She noticed that the moss under her feet were actually carpeting a layer of fitted stones, perhaps used as a walkway at one time. Some of the plants have been manipulated to form chairs and bridges, although most of those had grown so wild with disuse that they blended right into the background.  
  
So once again Samus's path crossed with the ghosts of her half-race. First in Zebes, then Tallon IV, then SR388 and now here. It suddenly dawned on her that she had marked this planet as a possible location for Chozo ruins. That must be the reason her animal friends brought her here. But what good would that do...? Maybe there's some upgrade for her suit hidden in these ruins. Maybe it would cure her of her disease.  
  
She neared the statue, gingerly placing her fingertips on the ancient stone, testing it for power. No, it was just a regular statue, serving no function other than decoration. Other sculptures hold incredible powers and others trigger secret passageways. Some of them even come to life and attack if provoked. She let her hand drop to her side.  
  
The forest was so peaceful. For the first time in her life, she was out in a virgin wilderness without the safety of her power suit. She could hear birds and insects without the constant droning of her ventilation tubes and see them without her visor analyzing their vital statistics. She could feel wind tugging at wisps of her heat-dampened hair. The atmosphere coaxed her to relax. Yet, she was aware that she had to keep a sharp watch for danger. Well-honed instincts warned her that something was about to happen, soon, hidden in this scene of serenity.  
  
A little insect floated into Samus's field of vision and she backed away from it. The bug had a transparent dome-like body with two dish-like antenna and six rubbery legs. It reminded her too much of a metroid to be comfortable around it. She followed it with her eyes as it drifted precariously on the air currents, about to disappear behind the Chozo statue.  
  
A beak suddenly shot out of the bushes and caught the bug midair, killing it with one snap. Samus jumped back in surprise, but relaxed when she saw that it was only the mother Dachora. Her green feathers blended in perfectly with the dense undergrowth; detected by neither the bounty hunter nor by the insect hanging limply from her beak. She trilled loudly, calling out to her chick. The younger Dachora scampered over and received a mouthful of insect as a reward, swallowing it in one hasty gulp and mournfully chirping for more.  
  
The adult Dachora turned away from her offspring and faced her human friend, staring motionless with her piercing ruby eyes. The bounty hunter blinked in confusion. "So. Are you going to explain what we're doing here?" The bird lowered her head and crooned enigmatically, not exactly answering. Samus became annoyed with the Dachora's behavior, as well as with the other animals. She's been basically bedridden for the past several days, brought to this strange planet, and now the animals are acting abnormal around her, refusing to answer her questions directly. She didn't care for that. "Well?!" She demanded more forcefully. The alien did not move.  
  
From the dense undergrowth, taloned hand suddenly appeared over the mother Dachora, looming and so silent that the bird was oblivious to it. Samus gasped and she immediately reached for the laser, preparing to fight for her friends. To her surprise, the hand came down gently, stroking the plumage of the Dachora, careful to avoid hurting her with its claws. The bird fluffed up her feathers, obviously pleased with the attention she's receiving and certainly not feeling the least bit threatened. Samus relaxed about three hairs, but still had her laser aimed at the hand.  
  
"It is too difficult for the Dachora or Etecoons to answer your questions, so I will do so in their stead." A slurred voice spoke from within the bushes. It spoke in very broken Universal, as if the language was not one it had the chance to use very often. Its hand was now comfortably scratching the Dachora's neck.  
  
The bounty hunter lowered her laser. The voice was hauntingly familiar to her, but she could not quite understand why. It awoke some desperate yearning in her heart.  
  
"You won't need your weapon. I'm unarmed, see?" The owner of the voice finally stepped out of the bushes.  
  
Samus cried out and nearly fell to her knees when she saw the creature. The laser dropped to the floor, forgotten.  
  
"Oh my God...!"


	14. Chapter 14

"Welcome, Defender."  
  
She stood before Samus with her hands outstretched in peace and welcome. Although she had never met the bounty hunter in person, she knows of her, what she is and of the deeds she's done. It was quite an honor to meet an individual so esteemed among her people.  
  
Samus could hardly speak; she was so awestruck. "You're...you're a Chozo!" She whispered in a bewildered, yet accusing tone.  
  
The Chozo looked at herself. "I suppose so." She nodded at the Dachora she was stroking before. "Lady Mother found me in the forest and told me that you were in need of our help. She was going to bring me to your ship but it looks as if my help is no longer needed."  
  
"Well, sort of..." Samus picked up her laser and dropped in her pocket. She felt shy and clumsy in the presence of this individual, and somewhat embarrassed by mistaking her as a threat. Would she be offended? Does her tribe have different customs and traditions than Samus's Zebesian caretakers? The bounty hunter was as uncertain and confused as a child.  
  
Yet, today was certainly a day of surprises for her. To at last find survivors of the Chozo after all these years was like a dream come true. After so much searching and heartbreak, it was hard to believe she actually found the elusive bird-people. She should be elated. Instead, she felt a hollow disappointment. It hit her like a rock to the face that although she found the Chozo, she would not be able to find Old Bird among them. If none of her friends and family of old were here, then what's the use of finding those of the same race? She felt as if all her long years of searching yielded nothing but a little peace of mind, confirmation that the Chozo still exist, but nothing more.  
  
"My name is Veaning." The female Chozo said. She jutted her neck forward.  
  
"I am Samus Aran." It was Chozo ritual to touch beaks in greeting, but Samus doesn't have such a feature on her face. She did the next best thing by letting her cheek graze against Veaning's beak. The gesture felt familiar; it brought back so many memories. She suddenly remembered some of the good times on the Chozo refugee ship, the one in which she spent eleven years of her life. Times of laughter, times of sharing, times of learning, freely touching cheek to beak. The bounty hunter let herself smile, allowing excitement overshadow disappointment.  
  
"It has been so long since I've met another Chozo. It feels like I've been searching forever..." She had a thousand things she wanted to say to her lost people but no idea where to start. She felt she could already trust this Chozo stranger, even if the two of them had just met.  
  
The younger Dachora suddenly interrupted her with a mewling squawk and an Etecoon also chirped his comment. The mother nipped at them both to be silent, but Veaning watched them thoughtfully. "They say they are the ones who brought you here. The coordinates of this planet were marked on your computer, but they were the ones who piloted your ship." The Etecoon chittered rebelliously. Whatever he said, it made Veaning laugh out loud. "Such a frivolous creature! He was upset because you were taking all the credit."  
  
Samus gave the animals a sidelong glance. "Alright, then. Good job finding this planet. Is that better?" They were much happier with that bit of praise.  
  
"I would love to hear all about your travels," Veaning said eagerly. "But the other Chozo will also want to hear your story. I'm sure you have as many questions for us as we have for you. Let us go to the city. Follow me." She crouched and bunched up her leg muscles, springing easily onto the branch of a tree five meters above her.  
  
Samus couldn't leap quite as high with her denser bones, therefore she wall- jumped from the trunk of another tree onto the branch. "So you've all heard about me? At least you know that I'm part Chozo. No normal human can jump that high."  
  
"Of course we know." Veaning smiled and clicked her beak in amusement. "We know a lot about you, Sister. You are like a living legend among us Chozo." Samus also smiled. So Old Bird's ghost had passed through here before, spreading her fame and glory. Or maybe other ghosts. She was also pleased to be acknowledged as kin to Veaning. It made her feel more at home. It was good to be among family again, no matter how distant they were related.  
  
The Etecoons had gathered in the foliage around them, hanging off vines and branches. The two Dachoras watched from their earthbound position. Veaning stood up and jerked her head this way and that, like a bird on the lookout. "Let's go. It's easier to reach the city from the treetops." With that, she launched herself onto the next branch, then the next. Samus followed in quick pursuit, pushing past leaves in her face, barely keeping up. Every once in a while there would be a horizontal branch wide enough to run across, and she would be able to catch up to the Chozo a little. The Etecoons swung from tree to tree like the little monkeys they are, but the Dachoras had to follow from the ground, feet flashing in front of them.  
  
It felt so refreshing to journey the trees like this after days in bed. The bounty hunter made another fantastic leap out into the air but nearly fudged her landing, the soles of her shoes slippery on the moss-covered branch. She felt a bit of regret that she would never be as graceful as Veaning, who flowed like wind between the branches, claws on her feet and hands ensuring she would never lose her grip. She was probably born to the trees, as Samus was born to the stars.  
  
Judging from her glimmering crest of blue and black feathers, Veaning was a young Chozo, likely younger than the bounty hunter. Her oval, slightly upward tilting eyes gave her away as being female, whereas males usually have spherical eyes that droop downwards as they grew older. Her gender could also be assessed by the pattern of feathers on her back, but that was currently covered by a length of green cloth made of some sort of fiberous material. She wore it like a cape or a backwards apron. It was decorated by a vibrant yellow Chozo symbol which, if Samus remembered her teachings correctly, meant 'available'. She blushed a bit at that. Veaning must be unpaired and advertising herself to potential mates.  
  
The Chozo and the bounty huntress climbed up towards the canopy, using the branches as easily as one would use stairs. They finally broke the veil of leaves and paused for a moment, panting after that brisk romp through the trees. Without the cover of leaves, the wind almost reached gale speeds at this altitude, whipping at hair and feathers relentlessly. The sky of this planet was finally visible, an endless wash of pearly white, as if perpetually covered by a thin layer of clouds. The sun also shone white, although a nearby star colored the atmosphere with a bright splash of green. Samus could not tell how high up she was, but she could see the faint backbone of mountains running along the line of sky. In the distance, huge bushy plants grew out of the canopy every hundred miles or so, dotting the forest like bouys upon a sea of green. Even the smallest of those amazing plants could probably conceal a modern battle cruiser in its leaves, while the largest ones rivaled the mountains in height.  
  
Veaning pointed to one of the nearest and largest bushes, squinting against the wind. "That is our city. There are almost three hundred thousand Chozo on this planet, and about five thousand live in each of the Sheltering Trees."  
  
"All of you live in the tree?" Samus wondered. "Nice. But how do you keep the tree alive if you carve into it?"  
  
"Oh, we use the tree for shelter, but we don't technically live inside it. We would not want to hurt our tree." Met by Samus's uncomprehending stare, Veaning smiled again. "You will see when you get there." She jumped, disappearing beneath the foliage, the bounty hunter close in tow. The two of them resumed their journey, staying under the cover of leaves to avoid the harsh wind. They only breached the canopy to realign themselves if they veer off in the wrong direction.  
  
As Samus drew nearer to the Sheltering Tree, it towered over her, an impossibly tall monument of nature, but still more like a gigantic bush than a tree. No branches were visible under the wealth of leaves that shivered with each breath of wind, glittering deep green and purple. The leaves were so dense that they appeared impenetrable, like a brick wall. It came as a surprise to the bounty hunter when Veaning simply leaped into it, vanishing into the foliage as if she had never existed. Half-expecting to crash into something solid, Samus took a deep breath and jumped in.  
  
She landed on all fours, the better to steady herself with. She stood up hesitantly and noted how the wind, as well as the veil of leaves, abruptly ended on this side of the Sheltering Tree. The leaves were simply a facade, a skin hiding the trunk and branches as well as providing safety for the inhabitants that lived here. The whole tree was conical in design, much like some of the other plants in this world. It started out with a relatively thin foundation, maybe a hundred meters across, then grew ever wider as it grew upwards, until it was several miles in diameter. Sort of like an oversized ice-cream cone. A cyclone would actually be a better analogy, since the trunk of the tree spiraled upwards instead of growing straight. That's right, spiraled. Samus was currently standing on the main trunk which was horizontal save for a slight incline. She looked far down and could see the enormous roots of the tree, as well as two green dots racing up the trunk as if on a twisting staircase. Those dots would be the Dachoras, who had to run up until they're dizzy before reaching this level. She looked up and could see a circle of pale sky, ringed by the multitude of leaves.  
  
The branches that protruded from the main trunk have been bent and manipulated and reinforced into homes. Like Veaning said before, no living quarters were carved from the tree's main trunk. In fact, the Chozos living here probably kept the Sheltering Tree healthy with their amazing technologies. And there were a lot of Chozo.  
  
Samus had never seen so many Chozo in one place. The sight of them all caused her to swell with happiness. For the first time, she saw them as a part of a planet, content and free, rather than the shattered remains of a once-great civilization, constantly running from demons unseen. For a moment, the bounty hunter considered giving up her trade and living out her life with these bird-people, never again worrying about money, or Space Pirates, or the fate of the galaxy. She used to dream about such things as a little girl.  
  
"Are you okay?" Veaning noticed Samus's silence.  
  
The bounty hunter blinked and turned to her new friend. "Yeah. It just seems... unbelievable. I mean, I've spent nearly all my adult life trying to find the Chozo, and now that I'm here..." She shrugged helplessly. "It feels like the end of my search. But the beginning of something else. I don't know."  
  
Veaning took Samus by the hand, careful, as all Chozo were, not to cause any injury with her sharpened talons. "The elder will want to meet you. Come." She led the human up the tree's trunk, walking this time instead of branch-hopping. This gave the Dachoras a chance to catch up, although they were exhausted by the time they did. Veaning picked up the younger one to save him the trouble of walking. Other Chozo were also beginning to gather around, appearing out of houses and jumping from branches, curious about the newcomers. They chatted among themselves in the Chozo tongue. Samus could only understand bits of their conversation and desperately wished she had paid more attention to Old Bird when he tried to teach her the language.  
  
A large, disklike machine suddenly rose from the eye of the cyclone-like tree. Samus jumped back, startled, then realized it was only an elevator mechanism much like those she had seen on Tallon IV. It was probably used by those too old or too lazy to climb the tree, or to transport heavy objects to the topmost branches. It was rather odd to see such technology in the midst of all these natural buildings and pathways. But the Chozo have always been like that: a striking mixture of the primitive and the advanced, forever united by their unwavering spirituality. Some of them lean more towards the technological than the natural, and vice versa. The elevator settled briefly on a higher level, then descended to the bottom floor with three new passengers, humming softly.  
  
Veaning stopped at a building made out of a beautiful species of vines, different than the rest of the homes. "Here we are." She pushed back a curtain of leaves and invited Samus to enter first. The bounty hunter stepped in hesitantly, unsure about what she would find. First of all, the scent of fresh-cut grasses assaulted her senses, almost overwhelming until she became used to the fragrance. The cavern was made out of branches so intertwined that not even light could shine through. A flurry of florescent insects provided the room with an eerie blue glow, just enough to allow Samus to see the walls of the building. It was about as high and as wide as a cathedral and decorated with metallic vines grown or shaped into intricate patterns. The floor was either made out of ceramic or hard, polished wood. Every step echoed in this dark chamber.  
  
Both the mother and the younger Dachora were eyeing the glowing insects hungrily. The chick was about to reach for one when a soft chuckle interrupted him. He immediately retracted his neck with a tinge of embarrassment. Samus looked for the source of the chuckle and found a lone Chozo standing on a pedestal at the other end of the building. He was a little shorter than the bounty hunter and dressed in swaths of billowy robes made out of some sort of reflective material. The color, cut and design of the clothes told her that he was merely the elder of this forest community, not the leader of the planet as her mentor and foster-father, Old Bird, was. He was rather young for an elder, still retaining a natural head of feathers although he wore a crown for ceremony. In his clawed hands he held a wooden cane shaped like the head of a Chozo.  
  
"Little Runner, I suggest you abstain against the consumption of our lighting sources," The elder said to the young Dachora. "But if you would be patient for a while longer, I am sure we could provide you with ample provisions for you as well as your mother and your cohorts." The Dachora whined and fled behind his mother. The elder's voice was strangely scratchy, as if he had ruined it by screaming a lot, but his mastery of Universal was as good as any native's use of the language, perhaps even better. He turned to Samus, smiling with the loose skin on the edges of his beak. "Quarano esludius tsangid Chozo." He said smoothly.  
  
Samus bowed. "Gyantsi Chozo cyrulid otorning." She replied in ancient greeting. The words sounded foreign to her; it's been so long since she's used them.  
  
The elder sighed as if relieved. "Ah, so you must be the Hatchling of legend, one who is of Chozo blood. Please, come closer. I have heard much about you through our ancient fathers and mothers, fantastic stories of heroism and triumph. Yet, I had never expected such a legend to grace our humble home." He stepped off the pedestal and drew nearer to his visitors.  
  
Samus warmed at the compliment. "Thank you, Elder." She said and bowed again. The elder's beak brushed the side of her face in greeting. He repeated this gesture with each of the Etecoons and Dachoras in turn. To Veaning, he was a little more affectionate, stroking the feathers of her neck while his beak and forehead touched with hers.  
  
"First Daughter, you have done well to bring our lost friends and family to the safety under our wings. If you do not have any unfinished duties to attend to, you may stay and listen to the tales of battles, bravery, and exotic lands that the Defender brings to us." He spoke in Universal for Samus's benefit.  
  
"Father Elder," Veaning began. "I assume our visitors are tired after their long journey here. Maybe they would like to rest first?"  
  
The elder fluffed up his feathers, startling the glowing insects that had been resting on him. "Of course, of course, child of mine, she needs not tell all for the moment, but we haven't even been formally introduced yet." He turned to the bounty hunter. "You may call me Wind Elder." Wind Elder. Samus vaguely wondered if he was called that because he leads this city braced against the wind, or because he likes to talk a lot. "But I am most curious, Hatchling. What might have brought you here to these remote regions of space. Are you in need of our assistance? Perhaps we are in need of yours? Or do you have some other purpose?"  
  
There was a number of reasons why Samus ended up here. But she didn't want to reveal to the Chozos that she had some sort of energy-sucking disease. Not yet, at least. "Wind Elder, I have been searching for the Chozo ever since Old Bird left me alone among the living. I suppose... the only reason I am here is because I've succeeded in my search." The mother Dachora grumbled a little, urging Samus to say more. The bounty hunter shook her head slightly, just enough for the bird to see and understand. The Dachora appeared somewhat disgruntled at her human friend, staring at her with red eyes stained velvet by the blue light. Samus hoped the bird would keep quiet about her illness for now.  
  
Wind Elder nodded as if satisfied with this answer. But Veaning was somewhat confused. The Lady Mother had told her that they came here looking for help. She said Samus was suffering from a dire disease which human doctors could not heal. Yet, why did the Defender not mention this to the elder? Veaning sensed that something else was on the bounty hunter's mind, something she was trying to hide. The Chozo wisely decided to keep her suspicions to herself for now, preparing to reveal them when she finds a private moment with the elder.  
  
Wind Elder turned to the Etecoons and Dachora. "And what about you, friends of our deceased cousins of Zebes? I was much concerned when I heard your home planet had been destroyed, fearing you did not survive. How is it that you have escaped in time and have your paths cross with the Warrior's?" Samus noted his use of 'Warrior' to refer to her. Chozos have an annoying habit of naming people by their traits, abilities or situations, forgoing the use of their actual names. That made for very complex bookkeeping sometimes. She wondered why she earned another nickname when she already had so many: Defender, Newborn, Hunter and Hatchling. Well, it's mostly the Space Pirates that called her Hunter, and she was a little old to be a Newborn anymore. She supposed the older Chozo still might call her Hatchling, but probably not the younger ones. Maybe she was due for a new name.  
  
The animals answered the elder's question with a series of squawks and chirps. Samus couldn't understand them, but she was able to detect changes in their tone and expression as they told different parts of their story, from the exciting to the mournful to the frightening.Wind Elder would nod at various intervals to indicate he was still listening. When they were finished, Samus asked, "Wind Elder, would you mind telling me what happened to them as well? I mean, I couldn't understand a word they said."  
  
"Ah, of course. My apologies, Hatchling." He clicked his cane on the ground nervously. "Where should I start? How about with the destruction of Zebes? They tell me that its destruction was one you had a hand in, yet you had no choice. Am I correct? Ah. You freed the Dachoras and Etecoons from the Space Pirates and they escaped using a small passenger ship. Now, you have to understand that having lived among the Chozo for many years, Lady Mother has learned of a few of our sanctuaries. She took her child and the Etecoons to a planet which we call Troidemis. The Chozo there have long since left this world, but she should have found shelter there anyways." The old Chozo shook his head in disbelief. "They didn't. For some reason, the Eaters have returned, and the metroids are nowhere to be found..."  
  
"Metroids?" Samus interrupted. "There are metroids on Troidemis?"  
  
"Yes." The elder replied simply. "The metroids have always lived there."  
  
"Always?" Samus stopped for a moment, trying to piece together her scattered thoughts. As far as she knew, metroids were native to SR388. And they were all extinct now. But if they still exist somewhere, then what would she have to do? Would she try to save them, preserve them from those that might use their powers for destruction? Or would she slaughter them all as she had tried to do before? No, she knew that she could never willingly kill them again. Not without a wrenching pain in her heart. "Where...exactly is this Troidemis?"  
  
The Wind Elder told her the coordinates of the planet, and with a tinge of regret, she realized that it was actually SR388. The Chozo simply had a different name for it.  
  
Continuing on with his story, the elder said, "Without the metroids, the Dachoras and Etecoons had no defense against the Eaters. It was a miracle they survived as long as they did, but they knew they couldn't last long. Their passenger ship was out of fuel, and therefore, they couldn't escape the planet. Fortunately, they were picked up by human researchers. They accepted imprisonment as laboratory specimens in return for their safety. However, the laboratory was eventually invaded by the Eaters, who infected all the humans and their experiments. It was around this time that you arrived to rescue them." Wind Elder clicked his beak. "I suppose you know the rest of the story."  
  
Samus listened to all this stoicly, the wheels in her head doing steady turns. The Eaters were probably the X. Metroids eat the X. She had always found it odd how the Chozo managed to colonize SR388 with all the metroids flying around. She thought that the metroids were the cause of their extinction on that planet. But from the way Wind Elder spoke of them, they appeared to be less of a threat than an asset, a vital item in fending off the even deadlier X. All of which meant....what...?  
  
She was about to ask more questions when Veaning touched her hand. "Father Elder, we should leave now." She said with a courteous bob of the head. "The sun is setting, and I suppose Samus would want somewhere to stay for the night."  
  
"Yes, yes. We can continue this conversation some other time." The elder said quickly, yet he was clearly reluctant to let such an interesting person leave. "Ah, you must be exhausted, Hatchling. How selfish of me to keep you to myself for so long when you have your own needs to attend to. If you are in no rush, feel free to explore our wonderful city tomorrow. My Chozo brothers and sisters welcome you here for as long as you would care to stay."  
  
Samus still wanted to ask more questions of the elder, but Veaning took her hand and led her out of the cathedral. It would be rude to refuse such hospitality.  
  
Oh, what the heck, it's not as if she's planning to leave anytime soon. Her questions can wait. Instead, she turned her thoughts to the prospect of tomorrow, the thought of once again being among the Chozo, sharing, learning and living. It would be just like years ago, when a bright-eyed young girl of Chozo blood leapt to where no other human can reach. Twice had she lost her family, and now, having found them again, will cherish every moment she spends in their company and care. 


	15. Chapter 15

"The 'energy' siphoned by metroids bears little resemblance to conventional forms of energy, yet it is something essential to all complex forms of life. To feed, the metroid latches onto its victim and attempts to penetrate its skin with hook-like fangs. Regardless of whether or not it succeeds, substance is still extracted and the victim soon falls lifeless, yet, without sustaining any fatal injury. Our research is attempting to uncover the source of this element taken from the lifeform. Our discoveries may result in new branches of technology coming into existence or it may further our understanding of the universe. Already there are philosophical debates opening concerning the existence of this element. Joining us today for an interview is Professor Hanlon of the Morripen University..."  
  
Alright, here's where it gets boring. I turned off the video feed, leaving the sound on so I could get some work done while still listening to the news.  
  
The Federation Broadcast would announce a new discovery about metroids every few hours or so, ever since I delivered Hatchling to Ceres Station. I've been listening to them faithfully, although many of the things they reported I already knew from experience. I would watch the visual feed a lot of the time, enduring images of sweaty old scientists talking monotonously to gain the few snippets of my infant in its relatively roomy glass tank.  
  
Oh man, I didn't know how hard it would be to give up that tiny metroid of mine. I felt like my own arm was being cut off, trusting Hatchling to absolute strangers. But the head scientist was rather empathetic to my situation, and that put me at ease. He promised to return Hatchling uncomplaining if I ever asked and even showed me all his equipment and procedures for my approval.  
  
But still...., I never imagined I could feel so much emotion over such a tiny creature. The universe suddenly seemed a bit smaller without its company; I never knew how lonely I had been without a companion. It's times like these that make me feel so...well, tragically female.  
  
"The evolution of metroids have always been of great interest to scientists. The energy required to go through metamorphosis in any creature is immense, but metroids seem to pull it off easily. And this is not just one evolution they go through, but several. Scientists are baffled by the complexity of their DNA which allows for this type of transformation."  
  
As I listened to the broadcast, I was standing in front of my bathroom mirror, pondering what the new length of my hair should be. I always cut it myself. With the type of life I lead, I never have the opportunity to visit a stylist on a regular basis. And I never understood why I should pay for something I can do myself with a simple slice of a knife. My hair was nearly at my hips; I felt they should reach just below my shoulder blades. I rarely have it any shorter than my neck because then I can't tie it up. And if I can't tie it up, it would get caught when I put on my helmet, bristling like a collar outside my suit. If I enter any hostile enviroments like that, my hair would burn up or get eaten. I took a knife from the kitchen locker and cut off the first handful of golden hair.  
  
"The protoplasmic bodies of metroids contain four nuclei, mostly used for storing energy. At the larvae stage, unlike other stages, the metroid lacks a hardened carapace, extra limbs, and even a head. As a bundle of nerves and nuclei wrapped in transparent flesh, the metroid is not much more than an energy-eating machine driven by instinct. As it evolves, it eventually gains a brain and may even grow smarter through subsequent evolutions. Its brain to body ratio increases with each metamorphosis."  
  
I shook my head. What would they know about the intelligence of metroids? I don't know about them getting smarter as they evolve, but I know for a fact that my Hatchling is smart enough to learn from experience. It can recognize things as more than just food and not-food. For example, it recognizes me as its mom. It knows comfort and sorrow. It's even bright enough to understand the injury of others, such as the time it healed me when my leg was broken.  
  
I was currently orbiting the airspace around a Federation outpost, waiting for clearance to leave. A fat wad of cash sat comfortably in my credit line, which I just collected from the outpost. That would be my bounty for ridding SR388 of metroids and delivering Hatchling to Ceres labs. I wondered what I should do with the money. I usually spent huge sums of it exploring the fringes of the known universe, checking out previously unknown galaxies and visiting planets rarely visited. They say that the known universe expanded 2% thanks to my efforts. But I wasn't looking for a place in the history books, I was merely looking for the Chozo. They have to exist somewhere, they have to. I refuse to believe they are completely extinct.  
  
Anyways, this time I had other thoughts about where my hard-earned cash should go. Maybe I should beef up my ship, add a bathtub or something; I certainly felt deserving of one. I also want to add another room, one which I'll fill up with lightweight rocks and heat radiators. It'll look something like SR388, and hopefully Hatchling will be comfortable in it. That's right, I've decided at this point to keep Hatchling permanently. It wouldn't be long before the Federation figures out how to clone metroids. Once they have their own metroid to play with, I can retrieve my infant.  
  
"Metroids have been known to reproduce asexually when exposed to beta rays, yet this is clearly not how they propagate. SR388's sun does not emit beta rays, nor are they found in any significant quantity on the planet's surface. Metroids naturally live based on a social structure revolving around a single reproductive Queen. Of course, the term 'Queen' is merely subjective; metroids do not have genders. It is speculated that when an old Queen dies, the metroids of the highest rank battle for leadership and the winner eventually evolves into the new Queen."  
  
Ouch. If Hatchling is the only metroid around, then will it evolve into a Queen? I'll have to buy a whole new ship if that happens. Plus, I'll end up with hundreds of baby metroids on my hands. What am I going to do with all those little gobs of jelly flying around? Oh, what the heck, I'll figure it out when the time comes. I shook off the last strands of hair clinging to my body and turned on the video feed again.  
  
"The last metroid is in captivity. The galaxy is at peace. This rare specimen was brought in last cycle by Samus Aran, bounty hunter, who was also responsible for exterminating SR388 of metroids. The larvae, which she has code-named 'Hatchling', was able to be captured without mishap by Aran as she came across its hatching process."  
  
I saw a brief clip of myself shaking hands with the head scientist, with the tube containing Hatchling tucked under his arm. The feed was very clear, and it zoomed in on the metroid scratching at the glass container, wondering how to get at the tasty scientist on the other side. There was an image of me walking away. Hatchling pressed itself against the tube in my direction, trying to follow me. The scientist carried it off in another direction.  
  
"Research is being conducted at a furious pace. There are so many potential benefits and mysteries about metroids that still eludes our scientists. Having only one specimen to study from limits our speed, therefore, our first priority is to research the cloning of metroids, as the Space Pirates have already perfected. However, legions of protesters are rallying against this decision, claiming that the production of more metroids will cause more harm than gain. The latest metroid outbreak would have ruined the galaxy if the Space Pirates had been allowed to carry through with their plans. The protesters even want to dispose of this single metroid for fear that it might fall into the wrong hands. Federation Officers would like to assure the civilian population that Ceres Laboratories maintains some of the most modern and effective security measures that would fend off even the most determined of terrorists."  
  
I stared intently at the video feed. Behind the reporter blabbing about politics in the foreground, I saw Hatchling floating listlessly in its glass tube. It inhabited the lower half of its container, as if it didn't have the energy to hover any higher. Why was that? Surely the scientists feed it well enough. My metroid finally settled on the bottom of the tube and whimpered one long, high-pitched note. The sound shook me to the bone. It was the same sound Hatchling made when I nearly abandoned it on SR388, leaving it trapped behind ice. It was lonely. It was scared.  
  
I couldn't bear to watch the video feed anymore. I turned it off, sound and all, and put my head in my hands. Ah, I'm a horrible mother. Hatchling must be devastated, thinking that I abandoned it to those scientists doing all sorts of crazy experiments on it. I suddenly decided that I should go back to Ceres. Then at least I can keep Hatchling company for the remainder of the time it was being researched. Heck, why didn't I think of this earlier?  
  
Of course, I couldn't leave just yet; I was still waiting for clearance from the Federation. My nails clicked impatiently on an armrest. I wandered around my ship, tidied things up, replaced a loose bolt, and played a round of solitaire on the computer. An hour passed. And I still hadn't gained clearance. Dammit, how long does it take for a simple leave request to be processed? For a lack of anything better to do, I turned on the Federation Broadcast again. Curiously, there wasn't any news on metroids at the moment, so I changed the frequency. Hmm, nothing on the next station I tried either. I occupied myself by checking the bounty listings, seeing if there was anything worth my while.  
  
There was a slight beeping and I saw a blue icon flash on the ship's main monitor. That would finally be my clearance to leave. I eagerly propelled myself from orbit and headed for Ceres, which was only two hours away. I couldn't wait to see Hatchling again.  
  
The speck of the laboratory grew ever larger in the black void as I neared. It looked something like a moon-sized metal doughnut with the docking bay in the hollow center. Ceres was shaped this way because it was one of the oldest space stations around, built back when rotational motion was the only way to achieve artificial gravity. Of course, it doesn't rotate anymore; that takes too much energy. It's now been fitted with more modern devices such as gravitational adjusters and pressurization units in every room.  
  
Anyways, I planned to hail Ceres station as soon as I could to prepare them for my arrival. But the moment I entered their communication space, I received a localized distress call, so weak that it barely showed up on my sensors. That's odd; there were no ships blinking on my radar. If it was anything larger than a small spacecraft, then the distress signal would be heard over a much wider range. Maybe the ship was cloaked. Or maybe the signal was from a handheld beacon that could be carried anywhere, not necessarily on a ship.  
  
I traced the signal.  
  
And I caught my breath.  
  
When I realized that the signal came from Ceres. 


	16. Chapter 16

A pool of crystalline water lies hidden in the depths of the forest. Three Chozo statues were built over this circular pool: a prophet, an architect, and a warrior, all dipping their beaks into the water as if to drink. This location was far enough from the Sheltering Tree so that it would not be engulfed by shadow for most of the day. But the dense weaving of plantlife permitted only a few beams of light to penetrate the canopy. Tiny, reflective lifeforms would dart in and out of in the light that does manage to filter through, flickering and flying. They would make no noise, as quiet as the mute trees and the still air, as if afraid of breaking the fragile silence.  
  
Samus breathed slowly, for even she was affected by the still atmosphere of this place. If it wasn't for the reassuring beat of her heart, she would have believed that time itself had frozen in place. She sat on the edge of the reflecting pool, nestled in the heart of the Chozo's forest which had been her home for the last month or so. She was alone save for a single male at the other end of the pool, as still as the statues he sat between. The bounty hunter watched he, with his troubled eyes, stared into the bowl seeking answers, and saw only a reflection of himself. Yet, he continued to sit there as he had for the past few hours, until he finally felt it was time for him to leave. He took a mouthful of water, bent in the same pose as his stone ancestors, then disappeared into the foliage.  
  
Samus watched him go, then turned back to her own reflection. Her image was as perfect as any mirror's, only it rippled every time she dipped her fingers into the water. She wished it would speak to her. Tell her what to do. The Chozo have always turned to their reflecting pools during times of confusion, peering inwards in hopes of finding a solution within themselves. But Samus was too impatient to sit through such meditation. Instead, she used the reflecting pool simply as a quiet place to sit and think.  
  
There was a lot on her mind. First and foremost, she wondered if she should stay here with the Chozo. After all, she didn't feel needed anymore by the planets united by the Federation. The metroids were gone, the X were gone, and any Space Pirates remaining were but a pitiful shadow of their former military glory. Anything else that might cause the galaxy any problems could probably be handled by the other bounty hunters out there. Besides, she had pretty much marred her image in the Federation's eyes. They wouldn't want a traitor like her working for them.  
  
For the last month, she felt content living here in this lush forest. Why should she leave such a paradise? Hadn't she done enough with her life? Shouldn't she deserve any peace she desires for herself? But it was a frightening concept as well. She never had a permanent home before and she wondered if she would soon long for the heady days of fighting and travelling. Would this new life prove to be too tame for her? Would she miss the stars?  
  
And if she did leave again, she would have to leave alone. It was clear that the Dachoras and Etecoons wanted to stay here from now on. During their first days living in the Sheltering Tree, the animals would stay near Samus's new treetop home, but they eventually wandered away to establish a place for themselves. The Etecoons would now forage out on the thinnest branches where Chozo and humans could not follow. The Dachoras dug themselves a nest at the tree's roots and lined it with their soft green feathers. Well, Samus felt happy for them, but she felt somewhat abandoned at the same time.  
  
As for her own new home, the Chozo gave her a little hut near the top of the tree. It was a humble bachelorette's pad made out of woven wood with two levels but no stairs. She could climb or jump to another level if she needs to. It was quaint yet roomy, perhaps comfortable. Thankfully, it was not as primitive as she had feared. The house even had an irrigation system built into it by tapping the stems of a hollow, pressurized, water-carrying vine. But the crowning glory of her new home would have to be the elaborate communications system that the Chozo had provided her. It could pick up signals from halfway across the galaxy. She made good use of the machine for the first few days, watching sitcom vids until her eyes became sore.  
  
The Chozo were so wonderful to her. But for some reason, she felt a sense of loss as she spent time with them, as if a part of her had died. Late at night, when the insects concluded their nightly chorus, Samus would lie awake and feel more alone in this tree city than she had felt back on her ship, hundreds of light-years away from any other living thing. If she does not belong here, then where could she truly consider to be a home? Was she doomed to forever wander the stars, forever lost?  
  
One thought led to another without end, without answers. She got up to leave, but not without first taking a sip of the silky water. It had a faint mineral taste to it, not unpleasant. Samus decided to talk to the Wind Elder about her troubles. He was not exactly the most skilled or experienced of elders, nor was his abilities as a seer very powerful, but he could provide some insight into her situation. And even if he couldn't, it was reassuring simply talking to him.  
  
Instead of tree-jumping, she felt like walking back home today, even if it would take twice as long to get there. She felt lethargic after sitting at the reflecting pool for so long, as if her blood had settled like the motionless water. By the time she reached the root of the Sheltering Tree, insects and plants had already begun to display their luminescence, heralding the glaring white dusk. She took the elevator to the top of the tree and decided to return to her house first for a little rest. She wouldn't want to greet the elder all sweaty and tired.  
  
The 'door' to Samus's house was just a big, obvious opening without any sort of cover. She had to put a curtain over the gaping hole so that half her house wouldn't be plainly visible to the whole population. Well, the Chozo had little need for locks or even privacy. She heard that some Chozo tribes don't even have individual dwellings at all, but a mass hall for everyone to live in. She couldn't imagine living like that; it would drive her crazy. At least these Chozo had a vague idea of personal space and property.  
  
A lot of the contents of her ship had been moved here. Half her wardrobe, some tools, items of food that couldn't be found on this planet such as coffee, and a water heater for the warm showers she loves to take. She took one now and dressed herself in a feathered robe that was given to her by Veaning. The Chozo told her that it was the garb of Warriors, and it sort of made Samus look like a Chozo as well. She regarded herself on a reflective surface and frowned. Humans simply don't look good masquerading as Chozo; the mane of feathers behind the cloak made her look like a hunchback. Well, whatever. The Wind Elder had been pleased to see his ancestor's garment being worn by the Defender after generations of disuse. And she had nothing else warmer than this to protect her from the chilly night.  
  
The elder's chapel was literally a hop, skip and a jump from her house if she took to the branches rather than walking the main trunk. She jumped up and nearly ran into a juvenile Chozo also leaping through the trees. He chirped in surprise, which turned into a squawk of shock when he saw Samus's face.  
  
"You are the Warrior!" He exclaimed. He bowed akwardly in respect. "Ah, and you are wearing the Warrior's feathers! From a distance, you look just like a Chozo!"  
  
"Why, thank you." Samus giggled. She wasn't actually giggling at his comment, but at the way he looked. She had never seen Chozo children before she arrived at the Sheltering Tree, and she just couldn't get over how silly their appearance was. They look like perfectly spherical balls of downy feathers with stick-like appendages and a beak poking out.  
  
"You should go home now. It's getting late." She suggested. The boy bowed again and made his way to lower branches. The bounty hunter continued on to the elder's chapel.  
  
There were five Chozo in the building this time, sitting or kneeling in prayer, silhouetted against the cool glow of insects. The village's elder was not among them. Samus touched one of the bird-people gently on the shoulder. "Excuse me, friend, but where is the Wind Elder?"  
  
The Chozo's feathers suddenly stood up on end and he released a shuddering breath before opening his eyes. He turned his head this way and that, as if looking for something, before settling his gaze on the bounty hunter. He clicked his beak. "Ah, Defender, you should not have disturbed me like that. I was in contact with the ghost of my mother."  
  
She quickly withdrew her hand. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't know..."  
  
"Ah, and now you do." He stood up, becoming a whole head taller than Samus. "Do not concern yourself over my sake. I will try again to reach her. As for Wind Elder, I do not know where he is, but his daughter is in the back chambers. She may know." He pointed towards the chapel's end, where rooms were hidden behind the pedestal.  
  
"Thank you. And once again, I apologize." She left the man to his meditations while she sought out the elder's daughter in the back rooms.  
  
The chambers which served the elder as living quarters were cut off from the main chapel by a curtain of vines. On the other side, there were less insects and more natural light, and the smell of grasses ended while the smell of medicines began. All the rooms seemed chaotic, with thick branches winding in random design and no clear definition of walls or floors or ceilings. Samus had been here several times, so she didn't find it surprising. She saw Veaning comfortably crouched on a protruding branch, watching the holographic feed of what appeared to be a Ucarthia romance movie. The Chozo was utterly entranced; she didn't even notice the visitor in her home.  
  
Samus squeezed her way through the branches and sat behind Veaning, waiting for the program to finish. She quickly grew impatient. "You like watching this stuff?" She asked.  
  
Veaning jerked her head in Samus's direction, startled. Then she tucked her beak against her chest in embarrassment. "Well, I do enjoy watching some alien films. Chozos don't make our own motion entertainment and broadcast it out into space, so we have to settle for the creations of other species." She stood up and turned off the video feed. "What can I do for you, Sister?"  
  
Samus shrugged. "I dunno. I've just come to pester you about pruning these branches for once. You can't even walk around here."  
  
Veaning trilled in mock annoyance. "If I do that, then the whole chamber will be covered with sap. And the insects will swarm here to eat it." They both smiled. The condition of the elder's house was a common joke between the human and the Chozo, who had grown close to each other in the past month. They would often visit each other's houses because they lived so near each other. Veaning loved to hear Samus's stories of her travels, while the bounty hunter would turn to the Chozo with questions about the culture and society of the Sheltering Tree.  
  
"Actually, I'm here to find your father." Samus cocked her head hopefully. "Would you happen to know where he is?"  
  
"Hmm..." Veaning ran a hand through her head feathers. "I'm afraid he went to the Sheltering Tree near the mountains. He had business with the technicians there; he won't be back for a few days at least."  
  
A few days? That was quite a long time for Samus to dwell alone with her somber thoughts. Her cheery disposition dampened. "Well, that's alright. I'll talk to him when he gets back." She sighed and turned to leave. Veaning put a hand on her shoulder to stop her.  
  
"Something troubles you." The Chozo said. The bounty hunter hesitated briefly, then shook her head no. Man, the Chozo were way too good at reading people's emotions. Samus wasn't really comfortable talking to Veaning about her confusion over leaving or staying. It would just make her friend sad.  
  
She pulled away. "It's okay, Veaning. I can wait until Wind Elder gets back."  
  
After a brief hesitation, the Chozo dropped her hand and let her friend go. "Remember, Samus," She added as the bounty hunter parted the vine curtain. "I am your friend. You can tell me anything."  
  
"Thanks. It's nothing, really." Samus said reassuringly as she left. But she felt much worse now than before she talked to Veaning. She wasn't very fond of revealing her mind to people, yet, she really hates being dishonest to the Chozo, those bird people who have loved her and cared for her and were much too trusting for their own good. She jumped down onto a dark branch, grabbing a handful of twigs to steady herself. She hadn't even told them about her weakening disease, the whole reason the Dachoras and Etecoons brought her to this planet in the first place. She was afraid the Chozo would fear her if they knew about it. And if she revealed her secret now, they would grow suspicious of her for not telling them earlier. She hadn't even shown them the fusion suit, even though they had been so eager to see the legendary machine. She kept the suit locked in her starship so they couldn't see it and question its organic appearance.  
  
She returned to her house and hung her Warrior's cloak on a branch. The night was rather chilly without all those feathers, with wisps of wind finding entrance between the leaves. Yawning, she quickly jumped into bed and buried herself in the warm blankets. She exhaled deeply and fell asleep immediately, suddenly exhausted beyond reason.  
  
Twilight insects retired as the wind grew colder, seeking shelter under the leaves. The pale sun sank beneath the watery mountains and that nearby emerald star colored the night a dark green. Stars appeared in the sky, forming a map of constellations which no human would recognize. A thin veil of clouds soon hid those shining beacons from earthbound view, foretelling of a wetter weather tomorrow.  
  
That night, Samus had restless dreams. They were visions without substance, dreams that she couldn't quite recall when she woke. Only the sense of longing and absent terror remained as evidence that she had ever dreamed at all. Once, in the middle of the night, she roused enough to hear a thin trickle of rain striking the leaves. The scent of damp moss, a sudden chill against her exposed leg. But her eyes remained closed and she soon dozed off again.  
  
This time, the dreams were vividly clear. She saw someone come into her little treetop hut, a shifting shadow made of the hiss of wind-blown feathers. It was a Chozo, walking lightly on its thin legs, its face shrouded in mystery. She felt the talons of the faceless visitor grazing against her arm, four gentle pinpricks against her skin. The claws spread out and wrapped around the arm, holding on tightly to keep Hatchling steady. The infant squealed happily and wriggled its mandibles for a better hold on its mother, who stroked the transparent body tenderly. But the metroid held on too tightly, almost painful in its grip. The pain grew even more intense when it started siphoning energy, now shrieking a predatory cry. The fangs of the metroid melted into the vicegrip claws of a Zebesian Space Pirate. But it was one of the Pirate larvae, tiny and weak in comparison to the adults which Samus often fought. It pinched her skin with one hand, the other snapping open and closed rapidly. It saw what the Hunter did to its unborn brothers. It shrank back, terrified as she leaned her head down, mandibles open and waiting. She could almost touch it, almost taste the lifeform, the little spark of life soon to be sacrificed to fulfill her need.  
  
Samus woke up. Her eyes were clouded; it was difficult to see. She felt nothing except for the overwhelming hunger in her mind. She knew nothing except for the presence of energy, a source hovering right over her, so near that a part of it touched her skin.  
  
She wasn't able to resist. With an unearthly shriek, she grabbed Veaning's arm and sank her teeth deep into the flesh of the Chozo. 


	17. Chapter 17

Veaning hissed and tried to pry her arm free of the bounty hunter's teeth. Samus did not let go, but clamped her jaws down even harder, drawing blood. The Chozo crouched down to ease her elbow, breathing in shallow gasps through her mouth.

"Samus..." She whispered, her words laced with pain. "What are you..." Then she caught sight of her friend's face and stopped short. She could hardly recognize the eyes she stared into. Samus had a distant look to her, an expression of determination and desperation that the Chozo had never seen. It was almost inhuman.

Suddenly, Veaning cried out, then clenched her beak tightly together. The pain in her arm grew to a sensation beyond physical agony, almost as if an integral part of her existence was being torn from her. She had never experienced such a feeling. But her reaction to it was immediate. She forced her breathing to slow and closed her eyes, fighting mentally to retain the unity of her self. It was not difficult for the Chozo to maintain her concentration, even under excruciating pain. Her heritage and lifetime of training prepared her well for battles such as this. Before long, the pain subsided into a dull throbbing, and she felt the strength of her will winning against the will of the Warrior. Her eyes began to droop and she fell limp from the effort.

Samus growled and opened her mouth wider to accommodate more flesh. She could taste slightly damp feathers and the warm, coppery-flavored Chozo blood. The taste made her wild with hunger. Her victim wasn't struggling anymore, but the bounty hunter felt no energy flowing into her body. Frustrated, she released the arm and grabbed the Chozo's neck between her canines. She could feel the faint heartbeat from deep beneath the skin, as well as tendons that occasionally twitched. But still she felt no energy.

Finally, she gave up and spat out her victim. But as she did, her vision blurred severely, nearly making her faint. Her head lolled on her shoulders as if it was she that had been drained of energy. She fell backwards and a branch collided painfully with her neck, jolting her back into consciousness.

"Ow." Samus moaned, one hand rubbing the back of her neck, the other over her mouth. Dazed and confused, she was surprised to feel something damp on her lips. She sat up and squinted in the faint light, trying to identify what was on her hand. There was some sort of deep purple liquid staining her fingers. For a moment, she couldn't quite grasp why it was there. Then she remembered. She froze in disbelief. It was blood. Chozo blood.

"Oh my God! Veaning!" Samus scrambled out of her blankets. "VEANING!" Blinking in the dim light, she made out the Chozo's thin frame crumpled on the floor. She gasped and fell to her knees. Oh God. This can't be happening... This can't be happening!

There didn't seem to be enough oxygen in the room. How could she have done such a thing? She reached out and held her friend close to her, letting tears mix with blood. What would the other Chozo think of her now? They would be saints indeed if they could forgive her for killing their elder's daughter. How could she let this happen? Damn it all. How could she have been so naive, staying with the Chozo when she could inadvertently kill them all? She had woken to a nightmare.

"Veaning? What have I done..." Samus whispered. The pelting rain continued to strike the leaves, oblivious to a human's guilt and grief.

But to the hunter's immense surprise, Veaning began to stir in her arms. Samus almost dropped her burden; she was so shocked. She simply watched from her kneeling position as the Chozo slowly, painfully, rose to her feet and stood tall, her eyes somehow glowing in the relative darkness.

Veaning absently rubbed her injured neck, her expression unreadable. "You do not need to concern yourself over my well-being," Veaning said. "When it is you we should be more concerned with. I am fine, as you can see." She spread her arms out in proof that they were still in working order. Thin Chozo blood marred her feathers, a rich velvet liquid marbled with swirls of white. Yet, thankfully, the human bites to her flesh did not cause much damage. She brushed off a few loose feathers from her plumage that had fallen. She acted pretty calm considering what just happened to her in the past few minutes.

"Veaning?" Samus's voice was barely audible. She reached out to the Chozo, disbelieving, wanting to touch her and make certain that this wasn't a hallucination. But she quickly drew her hand back. "You must be afraid of me now. After what I nearly did to you."

"No, no." Veaning crouched down and put her arms around her friend. "Not at all." Samus shrank away at first, afraid she would again succumb to the energy-starving condition she only just awoke from. But then she fell into the Chozo's embrace, shivering, accepting whatever comfort her friend could offer.

"Oh God. I can't believe it. I thought I had killed you." Her mouth was dry, her voice husky. She was relieved beyond words that Veaning had survived, but ashamed at herself for ever letting this happen. She was also confused. Confused by how her friend managed to survive that attack, when all her previous victims had fallen to her, leaving nothing but an empty husk.

"It was not too difficult surviving your attack." Veaning replied reassuringly. "You might be the Warrior, but not even Ultimate Warriors can take the ghost of a Chozo." That sentence made no sense to Samus. She remained silent and let Veaning continue. "But from the way you speak, I assume you knew of your abilities before you came here. Why did you not tell anyone about this?"

"I..." The bounty hunter felt as guilty as a child caught in a lie. "I thought I would scare your people if I told them."

"'Your people?'" Veaning echoed. "You still think of us as a separate being? The Chozo are our people. We share the same spirit; we share the same blood." To emphasize this, she pressed her beak against Samus's cheek, almost forcefully, a sign of friendship. "Appearance does not matter. Neither does abilities, nor experience. I, for one, am not afraid of you. I know you would never do anything intentionally to harm me." She made herself comfortable on a branch. "Now why don't you tell me exactly what happened to you? You were born human. You were infused with Chozo blood. And now you are part Ultimate Warrior. How did that come to happen?"

The bounty hunter sat on her bed and turned to Veaning with an eyebrow raised in confusion. "Wait a minute. What exactly do you mean by 'Ultimate Warrior'? You said it a few times, but I'm not sure I know what it means." She blinked her tired eyes. There was no chance she would be getting any more sleep this night.

"You are part Ultimate Warrior." Veaning clicked her beak, considering. "Of course, you must know them by their other name. 'Ultimate Warrior' directly translated into Chozo script is the word 'metroid', which, I believe, is the Federation's official name for our creature."

"What?" Samus stood up so quickly that Veaning put an arm over her face, fearing another attack. "Are you saying that I am part metroid? But how..." She froze for a moment as realization dawned on her, the longest moment of her life. She gasped and put a hand over her mouth. "The metroid vaccine! Hell, that's what happened to me! Oh God. It changed me. Of course..." Stupid! It all made sense now. The metroid vaccine she received after her brush with the X infection allowed her to do more than simply absorb the parasites. Like a metroid, she also inherited the ability to siphon energy from nearly all living things. Plus, she supposed that a long period without this type of nourishment would make her slow and lethargic, but contact with a source of energy would excite her into an uncontrolled frenzy, a lust to devour the nearest edible creature. The power suit had changed accordingly, providing her with mandibles and blades like an adult metroid.

God, she should have suspected this earlier. Her 'illness' was not due to a of a lack of nutrition or lack of exercise. Those were all just rationalizations, excuses, because there was no better explanation. If she was capable of guessing the truth, of figuring out that she was partly metroid, then perhaps she purposely didn't try. She didn't want to realize the truth.

And what of the vaccine's side effects? At first, she was direly vulnerable to cold although it has become tolerable with the addition of the varia suit upgrade to her fusion suit. The Federation had also speculated that her system would reject an ice beam upgrade, which was later proven incorrect. It was a reasonable prediction, however. What else had changed about her that she wouldn't discover until the most inconvenient moment? Could she float like a metroid? Could she reproduce asexually if she comes into contact with beta rays? Could she shed her skin and evolve? And if she does, what's stopping her from becoming the next metroid Queen?

Veaning saw that her friend was not about to lunge at her, so she sat down carefully. Samus noticed this and sat down herself. "I'm sorry. I'm not going to attack you."

"Both of us know that you won't be able to stop yourself if you do." The Chozo said quietly. Samus looked away, unable to meet Veaning's eyes. "But a metroid can not kill me. The strength of a Chozo will always prevail over an Ultimate Warrior."

The bounty hunter stared hard at Veaning. "And why is that? I've been wondering why you weren't killed."

"Ah, how should I explain this to you..." A stray wind breezed through the house, causing the Chozo to fluff up her feathers. Her talons clawed nervously at the soft branch she held onto. "Metroids were created to detach the ghosts of creatures. Most animals have their ghosts loosely attached to their physical bodies, and the Ultimate Warrior can easily tear out those bonds to siphon out the energy left behind. But Chozo have a very... conscious control of their ghosts. This is a very primitive way of explaining it, but we can even 'build' and 'break' those bonds as we see fit. We sometimes pass silently into a physical death by deliberately detaching our ghosts. And I resisted your attack by preventing you from tearing my ghost away."

Samus only nodded. This was a lot of information to take in at one time. "Wait. Did you say metroids were created?"

"We Chozo created them." She replied simply.

Samus nearly fell over at that response. "What the... Why the hell would they do that! They're probably the most dangerous species in the galaxy!"

Veaning shook her head. "No, the Eaters are." The Eaters. Those would be the X, a threat much more malicious than the metroids, and with so much greater destructive potential. Samus had to agree there. "You do know that Eaters are the primary prey of the metroids? Ultimate Warriors don't even bother with other lifeforms if there are many Eaters present for them to eat. Those parasites are the antithesis of the Chozo. They are viral ghosts who prey upon other ghosts, annihilating them completely. It is a horrible way to die, deprived of even an afterlife. They would corrupt and mutate their victim's physical body, and use it to produce more Eaters. Even metroids are tamer than this; they feed solely on the energy off a ghost's bonds, not on the ghost itself. The pioneer Chozo to Troidemis were completely devoured by the Eaters. To combat these creatures, we created the Ultimate Warriors, and named them so because they attacked the center of existence of all their enemies. But we were not concerned over our own safety. Metroids soon learned that they could not absorb Chozo energy and left us in peace."

Samus sighed wearily. She stared down at her hands. "So that is where they come from. I had always thought that the Chozo of SR3... I mean Troidemis, had been killed by the metroids. And now I find out they were created by the Chozo." The rain outside had subsided, leaving her house glaringly silent. She felt suddenly older. "I spent so much of my life hunting after the metroids. I killed them all. Now I find out that they were the only defense against a greater evil. And Ha, now I am one of them. How's that for ironic?"

Veaning had nothing to say to that, so she stayed silent. The bounty hunter noticed a faint ray of light penetrating through a crack in the wall. It was morning already.

Samus shifted impatiently on her bed. "So now what? We've established that I'm part metroid, and that I can't eat any Chozo. Which is fine here, but if I go anywhere else in the galaxy, everyone around me will be in danger."

Veaning shrugged as if the answer was obvious. "Then don't leave. You are welcome to stay here for as long as you please."

Samus hesitated. She had been considering this plan of action, and now she even had a very good reason not to leave. Yet, spoken aloud, the idea sounded unbearable to the self-proclaimed bounty hunter. The universe was her playground, untamed and in need of exploring. It wasn't simply a desire to find a Chozo world or a feeling of duty towards the civilized galaxy that had driven her to scour the fringes of space. It a love of the stars that kept her suited up indefinitely in her lonely hunter ship, always waiting with baited breath for the next bounty report to come in, sending her resolutely towards unknown destinations.

God how she loved it. She had seen many things in her travels; the strange, the wonderful, the terrifying, the breathtakingly beautiful. Things that no other being in existence had ever experienced. How many could say they had seen the Zebesian sunset, with a belt of acid cloud embracing that ruby sun like a cushion wielding a jewel. Nothing could ever compare to that sight, and now it existed only in her memory. Samus had met many people, and her friends were scattered across space and species. The Chozo, Etecoons, Dachoras, humans, metroids. She missed Old Bird. She missed Adam. She missed Hatchling. And she would miss Veaning and the other Chozo when she left here, but to stay would be condemning herself to prison, a death sentence. Now she has realized this, she knew she would not give up the life she had lived for anything. Illness or not, she would continue to do what she does best.

The Chozo cocked her head, noting Samus's brief silence. "But of course, the Defender would not want to stay in our humble Sheltering Tree, not when there are innocents yet to be threatened and saved." Veaning spoke as if she had just read her friend's mind. She parted a curtain of leaves and peered outside. "It is dawn already. I will talk to my father about your problem and we will do whatever we can to help you. Believe me, you will have the best of Chozo talents at your disposal."

"That's a relief." Samus laced her fingers together and stretched. She smiled broadly. Surely the Chozo, with their vast stores of knowledge, can make her normal again. "I can't wait to be cured of this metroid problem. It's like a curse, not knowing who or when you might kill again, and not being able to control yourself." She closed her eyes and sighed deeply. The memories were not pleasant. She would be glad to finally put them behind her. "Thanks for your help, Veaning. I don't know what I would do without you." The Chozo bowed humbly at the praise. Samus raised an eyebrow and touched her friend's shoulder. "Um, you might want to wash your wounds before you go. Or maybe put on a bandage or something. With all that blood on your feathers, you look more like a Warrior than I do."


	18. Chapter 18

"Ah! Extraordinary! Legends have spoken of this piece of weaponry!" Wind Elder exclaimed as he fawned over Samus's fusion suit, having just seen it for the first time. The suit's owner watched nervously from a distance, afraid that the outfit would receive negative comments due to its organic condition. But the Chozo didn't seem to care at all. He prodded the mechanical flesh with a talon and stepped back, admiring it from afar.  
  
"There shall be statues made of this artifact in the future. I shall see to it myself!" He smiled and nodded to one of the other Chozo crowded in Samus's humble little hut, a mechanic from another Sheltering Tree. Wind Elder had returned from his journey as soon as Veaning sent him a communication on Samus's condition. And with him, he brought technicians, scientists, philosophers and leaders that he thought would be of assistance. There were still others coming from all directions, even a few that would hail from off-planet.  
  
"A Chozo statue? Of me?" Samus asked, a little abashed. She had always looked upon the statues with respect and reverence, those symbols of Chozo civilization and power. To have one made in her image, immortalizing her forever... Well, she wasn't used to that kind of popularity.  
  
"Of course." Veaning said, her eyes gleaming with excitement. "Don't be so surprised. I heard that on Hester's moon, another Chozo colony, they are making a statue of your suit's likeness before it became fused with metroid blood. They received a rough outline of the suit's design from a ghost."  
  
"A ghost? Would it be Old Bird's ghost?"  
  
With the equivalence of a shrug, Veaning said, "I know of no other person who designed your power suit."  
  
"However, do not expect to see the statue anytime soon, young one." Another Chozo remarked. "They have been working on the Hester's moon statue for six years. It may be another decade before it is completed."  
  
The air began to smell spicy, like warm feathers, as Chozo of various occupations all squeezed together, trying to examine the fusion suit. Technicians dismantled the suit into easier-to-manage pieces, although there were some parts fused together with organic skin that would no longer come apart. Scientists extracted various body fluids from the bounty hunter, as well as some samples of bone marrow to study. There were even a few scholars hanging around, rapidly sketching holograms and typing up essays, attempting to record this event for their archives. All this activity reminded Samus of the last time she went to see a doctor about her power suit, back on that distant planet several long months ago.  
  
The head biologist finally finished examining the power suit and cleared his throat. Everyone fell silent, waiting for him to report his findings.  
  
"Samus Aran, Defender and Hatchling of the Chozo." He began, speaking in a loud voice for everyone's benefit. "Your body had been infused with the blood of Ultimate Warriors, much like how you were given Chozo blood when you were but a newborn. It altered your physiology so that you acquired some metroid-like traits. But this fusion was rather crude, with side effects equaling the benefits. Your power suit adjusted itself as a reaction to your change in biology."  
  
Samus nodded mutely. The suit had always been extremely sensitive to her condition, growing as she grew, even filling out in certain unexpected areas when she reached puberty. She sometimes wondered if it was a lifeform of its own, a symbiotic creature of some sort.  
  
"From what you and Veaning have reported, symptoms include vulnerability to cold, the ability to detach a ghost from a physical body, and changes to your power suit that aid your metroid-like behaviors." The biologist clicked his beak and seemed to hesitate. Samus swallowed, wondering what this pause may mean. The Chozo's gaze hardened. "I know you wish to be completely free of the metroid's blood, Legendary Warrior, but it has been in your system for too long. It would be impossible for us to remove all traces of it entirely."  
  
"What do you mean, 'it's been too long'?" Samus demanded. "Are you saying you can't do anything?"  
  
Wind Elder put a hand on her shoulder. "Peace." He reassured the human. Samus fidgeted in her seat.  
  
The biologist Chozo bowed his head apologetically. "I am sorry. But the metroid blood has become a foundation for the growth of other cells. If we took that away, then the results may be catastrophic." A few other scientists murmured in agreement to this statement.  
  
"Think about your Chozo heritage." The biologist explained gently. "It made you taller than most humans, with lighter bones and muscles of greater efficiency. What would happen if we crudely ripped away those genes from your body, a body that has become accustomed to such changes? Your bones would become denser, with less and less ability to hold them upright as your muscles degenerated. You will become unable to breathe as your diaphragm fails to expand a heavier ribcage. Or your arteries will burst from an overactive heart supplying blood which your tissues no longer need. Or your body may try to compensate your loss of muscle with loss of bone mass, disintegrating the cartilage between your joints until you eventually become as stiff as a carved doll." The biologist paused, waiting for his lecture to sink in. "These are only a few of the predicted results of removing Chozo blood. You can see why we are so reluctant to remove the metroid blood. You possess one of the most complicated inter-species fusions we have ever come across."  
  
Samus had her jaw set tightly in grim frustration. "Then...what can be done?"  
  
"We can not remove it, but we will do our best to inactivate as many of its features as we can. And yet, we can not know what we are capable of taking away safely at this time. More research is needed."  
  
"And yet..." A wizened old elder spoke up for the first time. "Are you sure you want to have all traces of the blood taken away? There are some traits of the Ultimate Warriors that you can not deny are useful." The Chozo who had spoken was known simply as Sharp, not only for her insightful mind, but for the way her beak and talons were always healthily smooth and pointed. She was recognized as the elder of this entire planet and was therefore able to wear beautiful, ceremonial wings on her back to indicate her position.  
  
"No." Samus shook her head. "I just want to be back to normal again."  
  
"Do not be hasty, Hatchling." The Chozo advised, clicking together her lethal beak. "You took on the Ultimate Warrior's blood to save your life and it helped you fend off the Eaters. You will be helpless against them if all the metroid's genes were to be repressed. Also, absorbing any enemy's ghost is an effective way to defeat them. Their energy is added to your own."  
  
"The Eaters are dead. They're extinct. And I get by fine with the abilities I've always had."  
  
"There is always room for improvement, hmm?" Sharp said gently in her rolling voice. Samus felt a wave of nostalgia with those words. Those were the same words that Old Bird had once said to her, before he died. "Besides," The elder continued. "Why are you so fearful of retaining any metroid blood in you? What is it you dislike about the Ultimate Warriors?"  
  
"Yes, many Chozo are curious to know why you destroyed all the metroids." Wind Elder said, a hint of accusation in his tone. "They were a prize creation of our ancestors."  
  
Samus pulled her lip into a thin line. She doesn't like to be reminded of her act of genocide, even if she had her reasons for doing so. "They were used as weapons by the Space Pirates and the Federation ordered me to exterminate them." She said simply. "And sometimes, when they attack me, I have no choice but to defend myself." She stole a glance at Veaning and turned back to the crowd. "But how am I supposed to live as part-metroid? I mean, it weakened me when I needed all my strength. And I kill things uncontrollably. If you Chozo weren't immune to metroids, I might have killed Veaning here."  
  
"You lost control because you starved the metroid part of yourself. Part of your body needs to draw energy from living creatures. If you had known you needed this type of sustenance and fed yourself regularly, then those episodes would not have happened." Sharp tapped her wooden cane on the ground, a cane even more elaborately carved than Wind Elder's. "But I suppose... With your lifestyle, access to suitable living creatures is not always possible. We will find a way adjust your physiology so that a lack of life energy does not bring about ravenous urges."  
  
"Let us not make any promises we may not be able to keep." The biologist advised gravely.  
  
Sharp waved a hand. "Of course. Nothing can be decided yet. Your scientists still need many more days to research the power suit accurately. My fellow elders and I have conferences to hold and decisions to arrive to. And you, our noble Hatchling..." The elder bowed as she said this, and Samus awkwardly bowed back. "...need your rest. This flock of birds must be disturbing the peace and tranquility of your home. We shall leave."  
  
"Thank you so much for your help, Sharp." Samus tried to bow again but was kept upright by two gentle talons under her chin.  
  
The Chozo elder smiled, lifting the sagging corners of an otherwise inflexible beak. "Let us not be overly formal, my Defender. Remember, we are forever in your debt." She turned to leave, all the visiting Chozo following her. A few of them carried off the fusion suit for further study, while one scientist picked up the various body fluids he collected from Samus earlier. The only Chozo left in the bounty hunter's treetop hut were Wind Elder and Veaning.  
  
Samus flopped down onto her bed and exhaled loudly. "That was unnerving. Wind Elder, did you really have to invite all those high caliber people? The planet's elder?"  
  
"So modest you are." The aging Chozo chuckled as he settled onto a branch beside his daughter. "I would have invited more, but I was contacted on such short notice. And yes, Sharp wanted to meet you as much as any other Chozo. We all want to help you."  
  
"Mmm." Was all the answer Samus would give. She stared up at the ceiling with a small frown on her features.  
  
"You are concerned and preoccupied, Hatchling." Wind Elder observed. "Please do not worry about the condition of your power suit and health. Have faith in the abilities of us Chozo." He paused for a moment. "Or is something else troubling you?"  
  
"You are incredibly insightful." Samus sighed and flipped onto her belly, shoulders propped up by her elbows. "I'm thinking about what will happen once they've fixing my metroid problem. What should I do? Where should I go? For as long as I could I remember, my purpose in life has been to find a Chozo planet, and to destroy the Space Pirates. I've done both. And the Federation won't accept me for any large-scale missions anymore. Am I supposed to go back to being a small-time bounty hunter? And I don't want to stay here, no offense or anything. It's just that..."  
  
"You long for the stars." The elder cut her off. "Yes, I know. I can see it in your eyes. And the legends about you always speak of your longing for space."  
  
"Really?" Samus asked in amusement. "One of these days, I'll have to sit down and listen to you tell all these stories about me and find out exactly what kind of legend I'm supposed to be. I should have known Old Bird would spread my rumors, even in the afterlife!"  
  
Wind Elder fluffed up his feathers, making him look unusually fuzzy compared to his usually thin frame. "Heh. Old Bird was quite the pilgrim. Elders on all planets have been visited by him, up until the moment he drifted beyond our reach." The Chozo settled down and cleared his throat. "Now, as for your own problem, you say you do not know what you should do with your life onwards?"  
  
"Yeah. I think of it as an early mid-life crisis or something."  
  
Wind Elder said a few words to Veaning in their native language. The younger Chozo picked up the control pad of the communications device and started flipping through signals, as if searching for something. Her father turned back to the bounty hunter, his face no longer cheery, but a neutral unreadable. "You may have to answer a calling sooner than you think, Warrior."  
  
"What do you mean by that?" Samus asked. She watched the static images on the comm screen from the corner of her eye, distracted by their constant changing.  
  
"Tell me, have you been watching the Federation Broadcast recently?"  
  
The bounty hunter raised an eyebrow in confusion. "No. Why? Should I have been?"  
  
"Let's just say that what you said earlier about the Eaters may not be completely accurate."  
  
"Father, I found it." Veaning announced. Three pairs of eyes turned to the comm screen, watching images relayed from hundreds of light-years away.  
  
It was the Federation Broadcast, and judging from the quality, its signal was probably from a feed trail. That meant it was broadcasted fresh some time ago, but traces of the data could still be picked up. There was a human on the screen, calm and collected, a newsreporter, and behind him a brightly lit star chart. As soon as Samus set eyes upon the chart, she knew something was wrong. She could not quite recognize the solar system the chart depicted, and even if she did, one of the planets appeared too oddly shaped to have been in space for long.  
  
"The vast storm of dust surrounding the former orbit of planet SR388 has settled, allowing astronomers and geologists to finally survey the amount of damaged caused by the destruction of B.S.L. station earlier this year." The man announced with the tone of artificial interest reporters tend to have. "Other than the dust cloud, the station has chiseled off two major portions of rock from the planet and has changed the orbit of the largest remaining piece. Some may remember SR388 as a hostile planet once inhabited by the metroids, then by the elusive X, of which not much is known. The Federation is now organizing a mission to investigate the remains of the planet, and to study the organisms that may have survived." 


	19. Chapter 19

"Veaning, have I ever told you about Hatchling?"

"You are Hatchling."

"Well, yes. But I had a metroid which I named Hatchling once."

"Oh yes, I remember now. The elders have spoken about it before. They found it rather ironic how you named the metroid your own name, for you were both survivors."

"So you know the story?"

"Not all of it. Just what was on the comm unit and what the elders had learned from ghosts. And that was a long time ago. I certainly don't know your perspective."

"Then want me to tell you?"

"Please do."

"It was after the first war on Zebes that the Federation hired me to exterminate the metroids. You know that the Space Pirates tried to breed an army of them using that beta ray cloning technique. Ugly stuff."

"It was our mistake to create the metroids with such erratic DNA. It makes their metamorphasis easier, but they are susceptible to nearly all forms of radiation."

"You mean more than just beta rays. Even phazon."

"Yes."

"Anyways, I landed on the SR388 and I found it more of a barren wasteland than Zebes was. You have to admit, Zebes was once a lush paradise before the Space Pirates came by, but SR388 was a hellhole by nature. Nothing there but mineral caverns and lava and such twisted life unlike any I've ever seen, and trust me, I've seen a lot. One by one, I eliminated every metroid I found: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Zeta and Omega. I didn't come across any larvae until I nearly got to the Queen's chamber, where they emerged from eggs. I finally found the Queen."

"Such a pity that you had to destroy it. The Queen may have been alive long enough to remember the Chozo when they lived there. Metroids live indefinitely."

"Oh, I've been meaning to ask, how did the Chozo die out on that planet anyways?"

"They didn't. They simply left."

"Why would they leave? They put so much work into their statues and temples there, not to mention the metroids, and then they just go away?"

"Our ancestors thought they could unite with the land as they have with other planets, but they found that they could not. Troidemis was a world of predator and prey. No plantlife at all. Below was rock and fire while above was teeth and blood. Children of the orignial settlers would never know a being that could exist without killing to survive. And that was no way for Chozo to live."

"No plantlife? That doesn't make sense. All food chains must have some sort of primary source, something that gets its energy not from eating. I mean, if one thing eats another as prey, then eventually, one of the prey must eat something other than just more prey."

"I understand. That type of setup was extremely unstable. The only way it managed to exist was through the Eaters, who would mutate a species every few generations so a nearly extinct prey animal would suddenly thrive as a predator."

"So what happened when the metroids came along?"

"The Ultimate Warriors not only suppressed the Eaters, but they stabilized the planet's erratic evolution by providing an efficient energy distribution cycle. Did you know metroids also excrete energy? There were some species that began to rely on the Ultimate Warriors for sustenance. Metroids were the top and bottom of the food chain at the same time."

"Damn it, and I killed them all. And then the X returned. Well, I thought I had killed them all when I offed the Queen, but as I was searching for a way back to my ship, a metroid egg hatched right under my feet! For some reason, I did not shoot the little larvae. To this day, I still don't understand why."

"Could it have been divine intervention? Some Chozo would be very saddened if their creation became extinct. They might have stayed your hand."

"Maybe. But the little critter imprinted upon me, and hell, I became hopelessly in love with it. It was the sweetest thing, that metroid. It would never hurt me, and even healed me with its energy once. I knew it was dangerous and that I couldn't keep it forever. But I wanted to keep it, to take care of it. I think I was lonely all those years by myself, so much that I even needed the companionship of a metroid."

"I think it was just your maternal instinct speaking. It's telling you to get a child."

"Pppht. Yeah right. And what about you? How's your search for a mate coming along?"

"Oh, my father brought in lots of prospective males from the other Sheltering Trees. Remember that one archivist that was managing the audio equipment in your house the other day? He was wearing duratine wristbands. I think his orgin name was Hendah, but I will call him Round Eyes! I like the way his feathers cross along his shoulder blades and have you noticed..."

"Anyways..."

"Oh sorry. You were telling me about your metroid?"

"Yes. My metroid. I named it Hatchling, simply because it hatched and the name sounded cute. But in the beginning, before I became attached to it, I had decided to take it to the Federation for study. I brought it to Ceres laboratory and left it for as long as I could bear to be without it. I think that was where they managed to preserve a metroid DNA sample for that vaccine they later injected into me. And of course, they used it to clone metroids when they really shouldn't have. In any case, I returned to the space station. And then I received a distress signal."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

A localized distress signal coming from Ceres. The main alarm must had been deactivated, and somebody had the opportunity to activate a handheld signal. I sped towards the station, not sure what happened, but knowing all the same. There had been an attack on the laboratory, a large scale, organized attack. Hatchling was in danger.

I rushed into the docking bay and entered easily, even without authorization. The alloy gates had been blasted open. All the ships and escape pods had been destroyed, save for my own, of course. But I guessed from the lack of enemy ships that the attackers had already left. That struck me as unusual. It had been barely three hours since the last live feed from Ceres, and to dispatch a station of this size usually takes somewhat longer. But these were professionals. If they could get to the station's center and disable the main alarm without setting it off, they could certainly manage to be quick.

There was no energy going to the main hatches. I made my way down the vertical emergency corridor, where hatches always had auxiliary power. But the lights were not working. Past the faint illumination from my own armored suit, the darkness stretched on without end. I jumped down, never seeing my landing spot until it met my feet. Sometimes one second would pass before I met any resistance to gravity, sometimes five. The corridor turned horizontal unexpectedly, and I stumbled over fallen debris in my haste. How I wished for my thermal or X-ray visor. But I was working for speed. Nothing mattered more than reaching the control room as fast as I could.

Oh yes, I was concerned about the safety of any crew members still remaining. I wondered if Ceres would stay stable if it had been so damaged. I had the future of the Federation on my mind, considering what would happen if metroids were used against it. And I badly wanted to tear apart the perpetrators of this attack in the most painful way my imagination would allow. Yet, all of that came second. Second to my desperation over finding Hatching. I couldn't swallow a feeling of dread in my heart. It felt like a physical substance, like bile that choked me and made breathing almost impossible. The farther I ran, the more it seemed to well up in my chest, threatening to overwhelm and consume.

I skidded to a sudden stop. Ahead of me, computer terminals caused an eerie glow on their surroundings, blinking and hissing with static. I cocked my beam cannon and stepped cautiously ahead, wary of any danger. The relatively bright lights from the monitors caused me to squint as I emerged from the shadows.

I had been in this place before, when it was well lit and full of scientists. The glass chamber where they kept Hatchling was at the center of the room, connected to tubes and wires and scanners of all sorts, like the heart of some massive, mechanical organism. But the glass was broken, and no metroid resided there any longer.

For a moment, I wondered if it was Hatchling that was responsible for the disaster on Ceres, but that thought quickly banished itself. Ideally, metroids leave their victims undamaged save for the puncture marks of their fangs. But this room was still full of scientists. Some of them dead from a neat laser wound to their chest, lying face-up, eyes-wide, splayed in a pool of their own blood. And some of them were literally smeared across the walls.

I found a hand with only the thumb and first finger left. But in what was remaining of the palm, a button the size of a coin flashed alternating green and red. It was the distress signal I had followed. I stepped over the device, careful not to put my foot down on any other body parts or fluids. The massacre awoke some deep sense of nausea within me, but I suppressed it. Violence like this I had made a part of my life. But every time I saw a severed arm or spilt entrails, I would wonder what it would feel like, and be glad that it wasn't me.

"Is anyone alive here?" I called out. The metallic walls absorbed the sound of my voice, reminding me of my solitude. As expected, I received no reply.

The main entrance to the room had been forced open. I followed the trail of carnage, slower now, very conscious that whatever killed those humans could still be here, somewhere. I entered an empty chamber, probably used as a pressurization room. But at the far end, I caught sight of something shining green. And at the same moment, it noticed me and squeaked a happy greeting.

"Hatchling!" I breathed, and ran towards the metroid. Flooding with relief, I didn't question why my baby would be all the way here, contained in a tiny transparent tube. I didn't even notice that we were not alone in the chamber until a shadow passed over my Hatchling, snatching it beyond sight and reach. I stopped. I instantly braced myself for battle.

A pair of fiery eyes opened above me, and I found it incredible how I could have missed the skeletal head they belonged to. A great, spear-like jaw opened in a mocking smile, revealing a thousand lethal, two-inch fangs and a restless tongue. I bristled with hatred and recognition of this creature. It was his burning intelligence. His lithe flexibility and ruthless cunning. It was his very presence that ignited such a fierce enmity within me. But I dared not shoot him for fear of injuring my metroid.

"Ah, so Hatchling is this little creature's name, is it?" The Norfair dragon said in a mild baritone. His claws clicked restlessly on the tube container and he casually passed it from one hand to the other. He leaned his head down towards me on a seemingly inadequate neck. "How cute." He suddenly laughed, a screeching, guttural cry from his throat, jaws unhinged to their capacity. His wings snapped open with gale force, easily enveloping two of the four walls. I took an involuntary step back, but stood my ground as soon as I noticed my reaction. There was no way I was going to show any fear in front of this longtime enemy of mine.

"Ridley!" I hissed. "Scourge of Zebes."

"Samus Aran, Bounty Hunter." Ridley retorted in perfectly articulated Universal. It always amazes me how such a deep and colorful voice could be forced through that pencil-thin neck of his. "Now that we've established who we are, shall we proceed with business?"

"Give me back the metroid!" I yelled, not wanting to put up with his taunts.

"'Give me back the metroid!'" Ridley replied in a falsetto imitation of my voice. I gritted my teeth, seething silently. That dragon always had a way of getting under my skin. He folded his wings and settled onto his haunches. "I think not." He sneered, reverting back to a more masculine tone. "The way I see it, I am doing you a favor. You neglected to dispose of this abomination back on SR-388, so I shall do it for you." He held the tube to one of his eyes, examining its contents closely. "I have more use of it than you in any case." Those contents examined him back, with whatever senses it possessed.

I suddenly realized that Ridley had a reason for not attacking immediately. Yes, he loved harassing me like this, but now was not the time nor place for a verbal spat. He was vying for time. Time to figure out an escape. I believe he's afraid of the metroid. He figured that without the container keeping it at bay, Hatchling could very well suck him dry of his life force, although it might try to siphon mine first. If we were to fight now, the tube container could be broken in the struggle, giving him a 50/50 chance of survival. He had no idea that the metroid only considered one of us edible. I decided to play his game while searching for my own opening.

"So what happened to your fat ass, Ridley?" I spat. "You're looking more organic than the last time I saw you." Indeed, he was a creature of complete metal and alloy last time I fought him. But now I could see flesh and veins between the joints of metallic armor. His skin was scarred and uneven, crimson and black like almost-cooled lava. "Did it hurt when your limbs were torn apart and replaced? Or were you unconscious the whole time, not even knowing what they did to your body?"

Ridley dug his claws into the galvanized flooring, which yielded like butter beneath his feet. I saw the flesh under his alloy skin shiver slightly, temporarily reminded of the horrors of the surgery he had to endure. I smiled at that little victory.

"I'm surprised to see you concerned over me, for once." The dragon replied after a brief hesitation. I picked out a slight strain in his voice, but he quickly recovered back into that smug persona so characteristic of him. "So you really do care! Does this mean we can put aside our past differences and make up? Maybe my sexual charm is finally having an effect on you, Ms. Aran." He ran his tongue slowly ran over his upper row of teeth and growled softly in a gesture of animal lust.

"God, you sick bastard!" I recoiled, utterly disgusted. "What, are you so desperate that you're coming on to humans now?!"

"No, just you." He purred. "Ever since I first laid eyes on you, I've wanted to run my tongue over your defenseless, naked flesh." His voice was but a whisper, his eyes slitted. "But I digress. Like they say, 'business before pleasure'. However, once my business with you is finished, I will thoroughly enjoy fucking your dead body."

His taunt certainly produced the desired effect in me; the mental image was almost enough to make me vomit. I fought down the wave of nausea, but from the corner of my eye, I noticed Hatchling float to the bottom of its container. Without hesitating, I shot a single beam at the top of the tube, which I hoped would release the metroid. But my gun was hastily aimed, and Ridley jerked his hand so that the beam hit his wrist. Screeching, the dragon took to the air, wisps of flame escaping the sides of his mouth.

The dragon made a vicious head-first dive at me, snapping with his jaws. I leaped out of the way, shooting rapidly, still trying to free Hatchling and no longer caring if I stunned it with a few power beams. Metroids could easily shrug off such an attack. But Ridley quickly figured out what I was trying to do. He released the transparent tube for a brief moment and caught it again with his foot. Now he forced me to shoot exclusively at his upper torso, while his tail defended any shots to the container. Hatchling was knocked around inside its prison, and it shrieked with increasing alarm.

"DEATH TO THE HUNTER!!" The Pirate dragon screamed before releasing a volley of fireballs. I was hard pressed to avoid them, leaving me open to a blow from his tail that left me breathless. My vision and visor blurred for a crucial moment while I recovered. But no attack came at me while I was vulnerable. In fact, once I could see properly again, Ridley was gone!

I craned my neck upwards with some difficulty, and saw the Space Pirate escaping into the heating systems above.

"NO!!" I screamed, reaching out where I last caught a glimpse of my metroid, although I knew it was futile. "Hatchling! Come back to me!" A single squeal called out in response, echoing until it faded. My arms dropped uselessly to my sides. "Come back to me..."

"Emergency," An announcement blared in sync with a jarring klaxon. Shit! "Self destruct sequence activated. Evacuate colony immediately." The emergency lights suddenly decided to turn themselves on, flashing vibrant red, and the whole station began shaking.

Damn those Pirates! It was their hallmark to destroy the location of an attack, and Ceres was certainly no exception to that rule. I turned and ran, trying to retrace my steps back to the ship. It was harder now, with air seeping out of the sides of pressurization rooms, not hurting me but strong enough to blast me off balance. As I raced through the main laboratory, I felt a crunch under my boot. Without looking, I knew it was the distress signal I had stepped on.

Debris was falling from the ceiling. The whole station was beginning to tilt on one side, then the other, as Ceres began to rotate like it had in the past. It made my desperate scramble up the vertical corridor that much harder, but I eventually reached the wasted docking bay. I jumped into my starship and flew out of the doomed station, watching as it drifted almost casually into one of the neighbouring asteroids, and silently exploding into a fantastic ball of gas and fire.

"Computer!" I yelled. "Track bioform Ridley, Space Pirate!"

"Processing request..." The voice activation system on my ship said. I prayed that Ridley was still close enough to be traced.

"Target located." The computer said after an agonizing wait. "Bioform found in coordinates 243d, 414m, 176r degrees relative to local sun of system Furh Sa. Probable destination: class XIX planet, Zebes."


	20. Chapter 20

"So, what exactly is the price of my fusion suit's modifications?" Samus asked Veaning as the two of them made their way to the bottom of the Sheltering Tree.  
  
"There is no price, Samus." The Chozo said quickly, immediately disregarding the very idea of charging for a service to the legendary Warrior.  
  
"Yeah?" The bounty hunter replied. "Sharp had been hinting at some sort of compensation in return for modifying my suit and my DNA."  
  
Veaning was silent for a second. "I am just an ignorant fledgling." She said finally. "If the elders had decided on a price, I would not know what it is, nor why they would want you to pay." She leaped off the main trunk and flapped her arms to change direction and grab a branch. She waited patiently for Samus and helped the human when she had trouble climbing. It was slow going for the Chozo, who could easily jump down three stories before grabbing a handhold, letting gravity do most of the work. At the bottom of the Sheltering Tree, the two of them followed a dirt path which twisted around the roots until it led them a short distance from the Tree's shadow.  
  
"Sister, do you know why you are being summoned to the mountains?" Veaning asked as she pushed aside a branch in her way.  
  
"Your guess is as good as mine. The elders were pretty secretive about the details." Samus shrugged. "I hate it when they keep me in the dark. They're usually so open. You know that there's bad news when they get all tight- lipped." The two of them emerged from the shadows of the forest and put their hands to their eyes, squinting in the sudden splash of light.  
  
A docking bay was built at the end of the path, nestled in the leaves. The metal and trappings of the bay contrasted sharply with the growth and nature surrounding it. It was always interesting to see how the Chozo mix the natural and technological, and sometimes confusing to tell which they preferred. But here, it was clear that they're a technologically advanced race, one that made every other civilization look primitive in comparison. Each of the numerous ships docked here were unique in design, sleek and powerful. The materials used to construct them ranged from synthesized plastics to alloys so strong and light that they must be a rare substance, if not for the fact that entire ships were made out of them. Some of the crafts were connected to roots and umbilicals, and it took Samus a second look before she realized that these ships were being grown.  
  
The bounty hunter gave a low whistle and tucked her hair behind an ear, though it fell right back to her face again. How she would love to own one of those beauties for herself. She took in the sight of the ships hungrily, and felt proud that her heritage was part Chozo. Samus caught sight of her own ship parked in the docking bay, and felt vaguely embarrassed, it being so drab and clumsy among such enchanting machines.  
  
Veaning led the two of them to an open-air shuttle where a Chozo pilot was waiting for them. He nodded his head slightly, acknowledging Samus and Veaning's presence, and let them board. The pilot was able to fly the machine by simply placing his hand on a featureless interface pad and subtly moving his fingers. The shuttle functioned more smoothly than anything Samus had ever been in, except, of course, for her power suit. The craft lifted vertically into the sky without the slightest recoil from taking off. It hovered in midair for a moment, silent, as if it possessed no engine, then sped off over the treetops. Samus gripped the sides of the craft tighter for fear of tumbling out, then found herself exhilarating in the shuttle's fluid motion. She squinted her eyes. The gale winds and the shuttle's speed whipped the bounty hunter's hair about her face. Leaves kicked up by the shuttle became tangled in those golden strands. She smiled fiercely, thrilled with the sensation of speed. It was one thing to fly at hyper speeds in space, with the nearest solid object light-years away, and it was something else altogether to race many times slower, but so close over a planet's surface.  
  
Their destination was a Chozo habitat not among the trees, but within the mountains, much like the cavernous dwellings of Zebes. It was a bustling and beautiful industrial area decorated with statues, reliefs, and various light-producing machines. Any artistic, scientific, or technological creations having to do with minerals were created here, where metals and elements were extracted from the rock.  
  
The pilot settled his craft on a landing pad and handed his passengers over to a Chozo assigned to be a guide. The guide led Veaning and Samus deep into the heart of the mountain, where more and more their eyes depended upon artificial light. In what felt like the innermost region of the mountain, they finally reached an antechamber where Sharp and several other Chozo were waiting.  
  
"Welcome, Warrior. Welcome, Daughter of Wind." Sharp smiled as Veaning and Samus drew closer to the flock of Chozo the elder was standing amongst. All the other individuals were wearing flowing robes and ceremonial crowns depicting their rank. Besides Sharp, there was one other planetary leader hailing from a far away colony. There were sixteen lesser-ranking elders of cities, including Wind Elder. And there was a whole gaggle of biologists, technicians, archivists and other specialists.  
  
"Samus Aran, our Defender, our Hatchling." Sharp introduced in a loud enough voice for all her colleagues to hear. "The Warrior to whom we all belong, and who belongs to all of us." Several Chozo lowered their heads in respect of the bounty hunter.  
  
"Thank you, elder Sharp." Samus said as she bowed in return, privately wondering if Sharp enjoyed displaying her in front of so many important people. But despite inner thoughts, her face was a neutral mask, often worn when something makes her uncomfortable. "I don't want to take up too much of your time, or the time of all these elders, so I'll be blunt. How is the progress on my suit going? I know you summoned me here because there is some news on it."  
  
Sharp sighed as if weary, her head sinking on her thin, elegant neck. "The truth is, progress on your suit has been slow. It is stubborn in its genetic structure, such that any changes we make will immediately be rejected and it would revert back to its original state." She rotated her shoulders, making her artificial wings flutter. She seemed uncomfortable about what she was about to say next. "We believe that in order to alter the power suit, we will have to adjust your own DNA first. Then the suit will change on its own according to your new genetic makeup."  
  
"That's fine with me." The bounty hunter replied. There was a pause. Samus frowned. "So...what's the problem?"  
  
"We shall have to put you in a biosac in order to implement the changes." Sharp hesitated, her beak clicking. "Do you accept this?"  
  
The word 'biosac' did not register in Samus's mind immediately. Then she paled, only for a brief moment, when she suddenly recalled the memory. She swallowed, regained her composure and replied, "Why shouldn't I? I'll do whatever it takes to get me back to normal." Her memory of her time within a biosac was not pleasant, and it seemed as if all the Chozo already knew this from the stories they told of her. "Hell. The sooner we get this over with, the better." Samus said with unnecessary force. Sharp saw through the bounty hunter's facade very clearly, but she expected no other response from the legendary Defender. The elder nodded mutely and led her and the other Chozo into the next chamber.  
  
It was a large chamber, stadium-sized, but somehow managed to feel very cramped at the same time. There were no windows. Most of the space was occupied by several spherical, transparent structures, balloon-like sacs filled with a liquid substance. Mechanical veins and roots wrapped around the top and bottom of the spheres, connecting them to computers and energy sources. They emmitted a faint blue glow which dyed the entire chamber with its illumination. These were the biosacs, Chozo-made machines built to perform all biological adjustments, healings, growths and regrowths. There was a male Chozo in one of the sacs in the process of having his broken leg mended. The fusion suit was in the center another sac, floating, hooked up to countless, hair-thin wires.  
  
Samus stared up at the biosacs towering over her, their transparent sides beaded heavily with condensation, although it was actually warm to her touch. She was surprised to find her hand trembling. Was she really that scared? Logically, she knew she had nothing to be afraid of; the biosac was a machine of healing. But that knowledge did nothing against the nightmares that would still sometimes resurface during the dark, lonely nights on faraway planets. Her fear was a child's fear, a terror from her past.  
  
"Are you ready?" Veaning asked. She placed her beak against Samus's face, trying to comfort the human. "You know you don't have to do this now."  
  
The bounty hunter shrugged her off. "I'm ready." She said. If her fear was known, then so was her determination.  
  
The head biologist clicked his talons on an interface, making the entrance to the sac iris open. Samus undressed herself and handed her clothes to Veaning before stepping into the entrance chamber. The door sealed itself shut with a click, cutting off the rest of the world. The bounty hunter experienced a moment of claustrophobic terror which she had to consciously surpress. She hugged her naked arms against herself, feeling cold and vulnerable. She took a slow breath, then another. She may not have the chance to breathe again for a while. The little room began to fill with the blue liquid of the biosac. Its consistency was thicker than water, and felt warm to her feet. Soon, everything below Samus's waist was submerged. The room was almost half-full when a sudden change in pressure sucked all the liquid, and Samus included, down a tube which eventually expelled her up into the main sphere.  
  
An eerie world of silence greeted the bounty hunter; all sound was blocked out by the liquid. Samus opened her eyes and brushed away the webs of her own hair, which drifted around her face like seaweed. She exhaled and watched in morbid facination as the bubbles of air left her body, floating towards what must be the upwards direction, although she couldn't tell for certain. Then she breathed in. Her whole body convulsed violently, suddenly, as the viscous liquid filled her lungs. Her limbs flailed instinctivly in panic, trying in vain to bring her to the surface. There was no air; she was going to drown! She screamed, soundlessly, losing more of her precious air. She swallowed some of the liquid, choking on its corrosive taste.  
  
For what seemed like hours, but was only minutes, the woman huntress writhed in agony, fighting against nothing. Eventually, she exhausted herself and felt her body relax, drifting limp like a corpse in the middle of an ocean. A more lucid portion of her mind resurfaced where her panic once overwhelmed. Obviously the liquid had enough oxygen content to supply her blood, otherwise she wouldn't be alive by now. It felt so heavy and uncomfortable inside her; humans simply weren't designed to breathe liquid. She wondered if the other Chozo were watching. She twisted her body for a better view and saw the elders watching her, as well as the flock of technicians and biologists who controlled the biosacs. They seemed relieved now that she had finally stopped struggling. Everything out there looked blue and distorted from the liquid, as if it were they and not her who was immersed in water.  
  
A thin wire snaked through the fluid and poked a needle into Samus's hand. She mouthed the words "Ow." even though it didn't hurt. The needle was much too delicate to even register on her pain receptors; it simply felt like an insect leg landing on her skin. Hundreds of the wires came from the top and bottom of the biosac, piercing through every surface of her body. The technicians and biologists went to work, examining the data the wires sent to them and sending back information which would alter Samus's genetic makeup, forever changing her material existance.  
  
A version of anesthetic was sent through one of the wires to help Samus relax. She felt its effects almost immediately and vaguely wondered why she was getting so sleepy. Her eyes drooped and her shoulders slumped. She curled up her legs against her chest and wrapped her arms around them, like a child in the womb, and fell asleep.  
  
************  
  
How do I even begin to describe this... this sudden metamorphosis of my body. It was nothing like my previous biological transformation, when the Chozo blood was first introduced to my system so many years ago. Those changes had been slow and subtle, carefully overseen by my adoptive parents, and the results predictable. The transformation engineered by the Federation scientists was crude, sudden and painful in comparison.  
  
I stared at the mechanical skin of my hand, now inexplicably more organic than technological in appearance. Well, my suit had always been biomechanical to some degree, but in the span of a few hours, the balance had shifted dramatically towards the biological. Very strange, and deeply disturbing. The sensation of waking in a foreign body was still fresh in my mind: the initial disbelief, then denial, and finally helpless acceptance. There was nothing that could be done now; I should be grateful that I even survived the X infection.  
  
I clenched my hand into a fist. Interesting how the suit's new 'skin' was almost as responsive as the skin I was born in. I ran a finger along the top of my leg. The leg actually shuddered, ticklish. Every inch of the suit's exterior surface could experience sensation, with the exception of my helmet and arm cannon. I guess with the loss of old abilities, new ones could emerge. In some poetic sense, my rebirth could be compared to the evolutionary metamorphosis of some creatures. Like, for example... the butterfly... or the amphibian.  
  
...Or the metroid.  
  
Hatchling saved my life, again. But despite what I owe, I'll never be able to repay my debt to my poor metroid. I sighed deeply, and put a hand to my visored head. I felt tired. Why am I suddenly thinking about the past? There's no use dwelling on these sort of things. Perhaps I'll feel more like myself once I'm out of my fusion suit. I haven't taken it off since the surgery. There hadn't been time. But God, what I would give for a shower right now.  
  
I leaned back on the commander's chair, trying to relax, if only for a moment, and failing. The chair was uncomfortable, not 'broken in' from long usage. And the ship's computer unnerved me. It's bad enough that the machine was my new CO for this mission (for I hated taking orders), but it had unseen eyes watching every corner of this ship, and later, the research station. I value my solitude, and even more, my privacy. I didn't particularly appreciate the unprecedented degree of surveillance the Galactic Federation had me under. I thought I aided the GF long enough for them to understand my preference for working alone.  
  
Oh, I complained, of course, but for them, the dilemma I had was very simple: take the mission and the ship, or nothing at all. And they were unnecessarily shrill and insistent about my taking this particular ship, with the computerized Commanding Officer. It was strange. Perhaps I shouldn't have agreed so impetuously, both to the ship and the mission. But for all its irregularities, I didn't find the Federation's behavior too unusual, perhaps just a bit eccentric. I needed a ship, and they were willing to provide me one.  
  
"We'll soon be arriving at the B.S.L. research station. I must prepare for docking."  
  
The computer's artificial voice cut through my wandering thoughts, bringing me back to reality. I experienced a twinge of frustration and annoyance when I heard the computer's clipped, monotone statements. I suspected the feeling would mature into a simmering anger once the CO started barking orders at me. And yet, the feeling brought back nostalgic memories of someone else I once served under. Another CO, a human I had known, long ago. I allowed myself a low chuckle at the memory and gazed out the front window.  
  
The B.S.L. research station grew steadily to fill my range of vision. It was big enough to be an oblong asteroid of sorts, slicing silently along SR388's orbit like another moon. I haven't actually set foot aboard the station, there was no reason to, but I've seen it several times from a distance. Sometimes I saw it while cruising on my previous ship, and sometimes during the clear nights on the surface of SR388. It was built not too long ago, after the extinction of the metroids by my own hand. None of those creatures would ever see this new satellite circling their home planet. But if they did see it, I mused if they would feel a stab of apprehension, of confusion, or even wonder at the sight of this foreign object in their night sky. But I guess we'll never know.  
  
The gravity aboard the ship shifted, my suit adjusted to compensate, and the engines silenced themselves upon landing. Everything was still for a brief moment, until I interfaced with the computer. The mechanics of the ship and my beam cannon whirred in unison as the station's basic map was downloaded into my suit, appearing on my visor.  
  
"There's been an explosion in the Quarantine Bay." The computer informed me in both voice and text. "The bay currently stores capsules containing recent samples from SR388 as well as parts of your suit infected by the X parasites." This much I already knew. My first suspicion was that bandits were after the pieces of my suit in hopes of acquiring some of the Chozo technology. My heart jumped at the prospect that they might even be Space Pirates! I wondered if they've missed me after all these years. I've certainly missed them.  
  
My CO continued. "The cause of the explosion is as yet unclear. Investigate. The Quarantine Bay is here." A small target appeared in the corner of my map screen. "Move quickly and quietly... You are still unable to use most of your latent abilities. Don't forget that, Samus. Stop at the Navigation Room on the way. Uplink from there."  
  
I did what the computer said without question. I'm sure it wasn't interested in hearing my opinion anyways.  
  
The B.S.L. laboratory seemed a clean and sterile place, to the point of lifelessness. At least this section of it did; the other sectors were breeding enviroments, supposedly housing a myriad of species from one of six ecosystems. This deck was supposed to be the living quarters for the B.S.L. scientists. So why wasn't anyone here? There's been radio silence from the station ever since the report about the explosion came in. I readied the sleeker gun of my fusion suit and walked ahead at a steady pace. I was uneasy, on the account of my degraded suit and the unknown journey into potential danger. But heck, I ate that sort of uneasy for breakfast.  
  
I arrived at the Quarantine Bay without incident, but that hardly put me at ease. I saw nothing out of place, that is, until I neared the bay's entrance. A ruin of twisted metal and dislodged rubble greeted me there, completely out of place compared to the rest of the stark main deck. I dropped to one knee and put a hand on the blackened structural alloy. It was warm to the touch. So the damage here was recent. I was mildly surprised to actually feel the heat at the fusion suit's fingertips, instead of having the data coded to words for my visor to report.  
  
Another possible explanation for the explosion occurred to me: perhaps the B.S.L. scientists stashed some hazardous material here, which, once activated, knocked out everyone by the concussion of the blast or the release of some substance into the air. I dismissed both theories quickly. My sensors detected no gases or dangerous microorganisms in the air, aside from the ones normally found in a human-suitable atmosphere. And the explosion, though violent in it's own respect, was not enough to damage any other part of the station. It only had the power of, say, one of my power bombs. It certainly resembled a power bomb blast, and I could even detect trace materials found in the explosives I often used.  
  
The computer had informed me earlier of biosigns within the bay. I entered cautiously, stepping gingerly over the debris, trying to be as quiet as possible. The inside of the bay was even more damaged than the outside. Pieces of shattered containment tubes and broken transport boxes were everywhere, littering the floors. All the containers were emptied of their contents. I climbed over several boxes when I heard something move. I froze, listening. It sounded like the slapping of large feet, something which I've heard before on the SR388 surface. Sure enough, it was the sound of a hornoad, a species indigenous to the planet.  
  
"What are you doing here?" I inquired of the frog-like beast. It snapped its jaws at me and coughed out corrosive a liquid, some of which landed on my foot. "Ow! Damn!" My energy meter dropped a bit to repair the damage, and I glared accusingly at the hornoad. It stared back, seeming to smile with the mouth that took up almost half its body. This creature was hardly dangerous enough to be the cause of the explosion, but it was enough of a hazard for humans on the main deck. I unleashed two shots into its oversized maw, killing it quickly.  
  
And then I experienced a strange feeling of deja vu. Time seemed to slow down as my memory flashed back to my last encounter with a hornoad. Too late did I remember that it was the X which burst out from the creature's innards that infected me, mutated my suit, and nearly took my life. I stared at the gelantinous parasite I had released, mesmerized by its pulsing, formless dance, horrified at what I had done. The X flew around haphazardly, and as I turned to run, it collided with my left shoulder.  
  
"Agh!" I fell to my knees and tried in vain to scrape the infection off with my right gun hand. Shit! I'll need to rush back to HQ if I was to get treatment in time. I couldn't afford to lose any more of my suit's abilities... The X parasite seeped into my skin, and penetrated my flesh... and, and...  
  
...And it felt nice.  
  
I inhaled deeply and slowly, delighting in the unexpected pleasure. Who knew X infection could feel this good? It felt like some of the small joys I had experienced in my life: delicious meals, occasional sunset walks along crystal beaches, my first Space Pirate kill. It was the taste of chocolate ice cream, a peck on the cheek, and a hot shower after weeks within my power suit. Did it feel this good the first time I was infected? I blinked, confused. I noticed my suit's energy had been replenished back to maximum. Perhaps one of the fusion suit's new features included the sensation of pleasure every time I gained energy. But why would I gain energy when I absorb an X...? Could this be some sort of trick?  
  
The pleasant feeling faded, leaving a tingling sensation where it first entered my body. I stood up, sobered and suspicious. Was the X chewing at my nervous system right now, without my knowledge? But why the pleasure, why the energy gain? This didn't happen last time. It was possible that my suit had adapted an immunity to the X since my last infection. Or perhaps the real cause of this was stranger than I realized. I should talk to the computer, see if it had any answers for me. I rushed to the nearest Navigation Room. 


	21. Chapter 21

In a small chamber of metal and plaster, I sat on a bed, wearing clothes made by hands unused to crafting garments of human proportions. The color was a pure eggshell white, yet it never got dirty. The fabric was soft and, as I could feel, waterproof. My old clothes were gone, perhaps too shredded and bloodsoaked to be of any use anymore. I stared at the wall, thinking thoughts that would not banish themselves from my memory, no matter how much I willed them to stop.

I didn't want to think anymore. I didn't want to feel. I didn't want to remember my father, as he was killed in front of my eyes, or my mother, her dying screams echoing forever in my ears, dying, dying, while only I survived. Why me? I didn't want to remember the biosac I was thrust into, in which I stayed for three endless days. They told me afterwards that they needed to put me in there, to heal me. And they were forced to use their own blood as a transfusion because they had no human blood to use. I could feel the changes it did to my body, such subtle changes that I could not even put them to words. But should I have been healed and saved? Out of all the brave people who died on K2-L, what made me so special that I deserved to live?

It's a terrible thing to live when everyone else had died. How can I live with the memory? I cried whenever I remembered, liquid pearls rolling off my cheek as if my grief could be drained out in the form of tears. I wiped them away stubbornly. Tears were useless. I had to stop thinking if I was to get on with my life.

Not that my life was worth living. What future could I possibly have living among these alien Chozo. Everything in my past was gone, torn away by the claws of those Space Pirate creatures. Space Pirates... My fingers dug into the bed. When I thought of them, all my sadness quickly disappeared, replaced by something fiercer, something that burned as viciously as the flames which consumed my former home. I could forget about my parents, my past. But I will never forget the Space Pirates.

Finally my tears stopped flowing. The door to my room irised open, and the Chozo Old Bird came in with another, taller Chozo. Both were dressed in black robes stained with the same carmine dust, as if they had been walking on a dry, red planet. I glanced at them from my seat on the bed, no longer fearful, but not yet trusting of these bird people. I would like to trust them. They have been so kind to me. There was nothing else left in this universe for me to trust.

"See how strong she is." Old Bird commented quietly to his younger associate. "As steadfast as a statue, despite her inner turmoil." The elder walked towards me with slow steps betraying his age and kneeled down so he was at my level. He used a knuckle to gently raise my chin, avoiding the use of his talons ever since I recoiled from their fierce appearance, when we first met, about two weeks ago. Only two weeks? It seemed like an eternity. Another lifetime. Perhaps it was.

To me, he said, "How do you feel today, Samus-san?"

"Good." Was my quiet answer, the same I had given him every day. I lowered my eyes, hiding from the Chozo's searching gaze.

"Then would you like to accompany me outside?" He suggested. "Staying onboard the ship for so long can not by good for your health."

I shook my head no. I felt his keen disappointment and quickly changed my answer to a nod, yes. I was indebted to him; it was only right that I should do as he says. Old Bird then smiled, an expression described more in the slight squinting of his eyes than in the movement of his mostly inflexible mouth.

"Hatchling, have you met my acolyte?" Old Bird asked, introducing the other Chozo. "I would like you to meet Grey Voice."

"Grey Voice?" I looked up at the younger Chozo. He was taller than my current comprehension; I could only see the bottom of his beak if I looked straight up at him. Most of the time I stood staring at the lower hem of his robe. He had a classic Chozo profile, with a thick mane of feathers upon his head and a downpointed beak. I frowned. "Grey Voice is a funny name."

Old Bird laughed, a hooting, owl-like sound. "His real name is Crowlus, but we call him Grey Voice. Old Bird is not my real name either. Gul'Gen is my name of orgin."

"'Gul'Gen'," I repeated, the words catching in my throat. 'Old Bird' was definitely easier to pronounce. "If everyone else has another name, then do I have one?"

"Your name has always been Samus Aran." Old Bird said. "But you have a new name now. I give to you the name of Hatchling, a name for a child of my own blood." He leaned forward and touched my face tenderly with his beak. The tears nearly started again; his gesture reminded me so much of how mommy used to kiss me every night before bed...

Old Bird offered me his claw, onto which I placed my own smaller, softer hand. "There are many things which I wish to show you on this planet, Hatchling." The elder said as he led me through the Chozo ship's corridors. "This planet... is one on which the Chozo have built a great civilization. But we do not live here anymore. I am hoping you will learn something of our history before... before we have to leave." Old Bird's voice was somewhat strained, but I didn't notice as I put a hand over my eyes, blinking in the sudden natural sunlight.

The sight that appeared before me was not the docking bay of K2-L, the only docking bay I had ever known. The floor was of fitted stone, not concrete or metal. This was a Chozo-made bay, surrounded by their crumbling statues and dilapidated buildings. Red mountains in the distance thrust upwards like jagged teeth towards a wounded sky. The sun was immense, and so crimson that it almost stained the green clouds black. The land was barren, desert-like, but I could see skeletons of past plantlife dotting the landscape. Perhaps paradise once thrived here, as had the Chozo and their civilization. Both were gone now, with only their ruins providing any indication of a past richer than this.

I would later learn that this was the planet Zebes, which used to be the Chozo's home before it was claimed and decimated by the Space Pirates. I could see the Chozo sentries as they sat crouched, poised like totems atop statues of their own likeness, waiting in dread for an attack which they knew there would be no defense against. Even now the insectoid Pirates overran the underground tunnels, gutting them of millennias worth of history for the sake of constructing their own base. But despite the risk, the Chozo still returned, because of me. In order to save my life, they had to use a biosac to stabalize the newly introduced blood in my system. They didn't have such an elaborate facility on their hastily prepared refugee ship, but there were a few that were still salvageable from their ruins. And what beautiful ruins, although they had not been ruins for long. The Chozo probably remembered a time when they played, worked, and lived among what was once statues, buildings, and mosaics, now just ruins. They were willing to endure the anguished memories of their very recent past. All for my sake.

I couldn't understand why they would do this for a little orphan girl of another species. I didn't feel important or worthy of the sacrifices the Chozo put themselves through. I felt like a burden to the bird-people; surely they didn't deserve someone like me. It wasn't until later that I would learn of the hopes they had for my future.

But in the meantime, I learned how to be happy again. I was a young creature, capable of forgetting and capable of being distracted, if only for a little while. When the memories began to fade, it didn't take much more than some good food, a new toy, or a word of praise to make me smile. The Chozo said my smile was like the quick ripening of the Temra summer sun. It faded just as fast. My laughter was even rarer, but to smile was something, wasn't it?

Old Bird was my constant mentor and companion. He helped satisfy my curiosity for everything foreign and interesting I came across. He would teach me the history of the Chozo, their language, way of life, and philosophy. Grey Voice took me under his wing when Old Bird's obligations as an elder called him away. He was a much quieter Chozo compared to Old Bird. I realized that his nickname referred to infrequent use of speech. He was responsible for my education in astronomy, Universal, and survival training. It was this training which I remembered best.

I especially recalled one particular moment. Grey Voice and I had ventured out of the ring of sentries, he unarmed, I holding a low-intensity laser. My weapon was strong enough to kill small creatures, but more advanced lifeforms, such as the Space Pirates, would hardly be affected by the blast. We even came across a few Pirate tracks in the increasingly barren wilderness. But the tracks were old, several cycles at least, and we were far from the Pirates' center of activity. There were enough cliffs and canyons to hide behind if we did happen to meet any of those insectoids.

Crowlus stopped suddenly and pointed to a shape in the distance. It was a spiny, commonly aggressive animal about half my size, known as a hoakut. It didn't see us, but instead focused all its attention on the dead tree it was chewing on. This hoakut was starving; the plants it used to eat were slowly decaying from the acid rains caused by Pirate activity.

I stared at the hoakut, then back at Crowlus. "You want me to shoot it?" I whispered incredulously.

He nodded without looking at me. I swallowed and gripped the gun tightly in my small fist. This would be my first time shooting a live target. Crowlus sensed my hesitation and focused his orange-orb eyes on mine.

"Why?" I asked.

Grey Voice blinked, a bird-like gesture with his lower eyelids closing more than his upper. "It is a dangerous animal." Was his simple answer.

"It's not hurting us." I argued. "Just because it's able to hurt us, doesn't mean it will."

Crowlus didn't move, seeming to consider. "Then you will shoot it for food." He replied. Indeed hoakuts could be eaten, but these days there were less and less of them.

I shook my head. "It's too skinny. I bet there's not enough juice in it for a single meal."

The Chozo didn't take his eyes off me, and I could feel his scrutinizing gaze like a deadly beam. Was this a test? I was tempted to just give in to his command. If I disobeyed him, he will surely tell Old Bird. But I just didn't feel right about killing an innocent creature. And I certainly wasn't raised to be complacent; I was born to be stubborn. I stared back, defiant.

"It is starving." Crowlus agreed stiffly. "Dying. You should end its misery now."

"But all things die." I answered, the words coming forth without my conduction. "That's no reason to kill it. While something is alive, shouldn't it live its life the best it can?" My gaze locked with his pupilless orbs of eyes. "I am... if, if someone is miserable, then should they just... die?"

The Chozo's head jerked back with those words. The hoakut saw us and ran off, disappearing behind a dune.

Crowlus's eyes became slitted and glazed with some emotion I could not yet interpret. His shoulders and neck drooped as if they had lost their energy, as if their strings had been cut. He wouldn't look at me anymore.

"Crowlus." I said. I yanked on his robe, trying to get him to notice me.

For a long moment, he wouldn't respond. Then he put a hand lightly on my head, gently stroking my hair. His eyes were still half-closed. We stood like this for a while, as the wind whistled and traced our feet with crimson sand. Finally, he spoke, so softly that I could hardly hear. "Sometimes yes. Sometimes no." He said as if talking to himself. It took me a moment to realize that his words were in answer to my question.

Grey Voice's feathers suddenly stood on end. I spun around, laser ready, and saw what the Chozo had seen in the distance. Two biped creatures lumbered along the horizon, their figures made hazy by the heat. I recognized them instantly.

Space Pirates.

SPACE PIRATES!

I couldn't think. I screamed, all of my collective fears and anguish expressed in that one sound. And then something snapped within me. I started running. No, I didn't run away. I ran towards the Pirates, brandishing my pathetic little laser. I knew it was stupid, but nothing other than hatred drove me on now. It was stronger than my fear, stronger than any logic, any pain. Everything else was pushed out of my mind to make room for this overwhelming hatred, this insatiable desire for revenge.

I didn't get farther than two steps before I crashed into Crowlus, who had jumped over me, blocking my path. Faster than I could react, he bundled me up in his robes, clamping down my arms and mouth with his hands. I couldn't see, I could barely breathe, and the Chozo's first few desperate leaps knocked out any breath I had left in me. I could feel him run and jump, abruptly changing direction, his talons madly clawing at the desert floor. Suddenly, he fell to the ground, with me still underneath.

My whole world froze. Oh my God! Was Crowlus dead? No, no, I could still feel his rapid breathing and his heartbeat drumming in his ribcage. Relief flooded my system, draining all the emotion out of me, including hatred. I became sure that Crowlus was alive when he tightened his arms around me, ensuring that I wouldn't do anything reckless. I wouldn't dare, not any more. The passion my mad rush was over and it left me deathly afraid. What have I done? I strained to hear what was happening outside, but the wind masked any clues I might have gained.

After an immeasurable amount of time, when he finally felt it was safe to come out of hiding, Crowlus got up and helped untangle me from his robe. I saw that he was mostly unscathed; at least no smoking holes riddled his body. He shook out his feathers, unleashing a cloud of red dust, and put on his clothes, slowly and methodically. He looked at me. Tears stained my eyes and my hands were shaking, although I still gripped the laser as if my life depended on it. I tried to stand and found my legs unsteady. Crowlus picked me up, gently this time, and carried me all the way back to the Chozo refugee station.

As big as it was, the refugee ship could not be seen from a distance, thanks to a form of Chozo cloaking technology, something which I would use on my own ships in the future. The ship seemed to shimmer into existence as we neared. The Chozo on guard probably noticed us, but did not stare. They would wonder why Grey Voice was carrying me. Crowlus went to my room, deposited me on the bed, and quietly departed.

I stayed where he left me for a long time as my mind churned itself into a jam. Crowlus would go to Old Bird to report today's occurences. I could already imagine the elder's normally kind face twisted into an expression of disapproval. My foster father often showered me with generous praises, but that made his reprimands all the more painful. In spite of myself, I wanted to hear them before they were directed at me. I finally got up.

I snuck out of my room and made my way to the control chamber. There was a small alcove there that I could squeeze into and listen unseen. Old Bird and Crowlus were in there, as well as three other important elders. I felt relieved at first, thinking that a gathering of so many important Chozo couldn't possibly be about me. But I heard my name spoken by someone, in a low, murmuring voice. I listened. Most of their talk was in the Chozo tongue, but back then, I could still understand most of it.

"...you say she is impetuous, Grey Voice?" Old Bird said.

"From the way you describe her, it seems as if she harbors too much hate." Another Chozo spoke up. "But she is not illogical. Her reluctance to shoot the hoakut is proof of that. To hesitate to kill is a virtue."

"If she is to be the Defender, then hesitation may result in her death."

"As will impetuousness."

"Then we shall teach her when to hesitate and when to kill."

"But what right do we have teaching a young human girl these sort of skills? We strip her of her innocence. To force her to kill against her will is to strip her of compassion."

"The difference between a monster and a savior is compassion, but her compassion right now is fickle and questionable."

"If she is to rage unthinkingly at inopportune times, then we have done more harm than good to the universe."

"She acted so rashly when faced with one of those invaders. There are scars in her mind which still exist unhealed. Do not tell me that she has none."

"We are not experts on humans, so these scars you speak of might only be growing worse here. At least she is healed of her physical wounds. We should give her to a human colony and leave her to be cared for by those of her kind."

Old Bird rolled back his shoulders, making his lovely wings sparkle in the stark lighting. He actually appeared to be angry. "We have talked about this before." He said, standing as tall and straight as possible. The other four Chozo still loomed over him. "She is our Newborn and she will become the Defender. She must be taught our ways. We can not give her away."

"Gul'Gen, we do not mean to denounce your prophesy," One Chozo said with a slight bow. "But there is no proof that she will become the Defender. You know that a hundred variables distort every premonition."

"She lacks the Chozo quality of discipline. Without this, no one, with or without premonition, can argue that she is the Defender."

"Of course she is not Chozo." Old Bird replied. "No Chozo can be the Defender, not with our pacifist nature."

"If she is not the Defender, then we can not keep her here." Previously silent, this time it was Grey Voice who spoke. Although not an elder himself, the other Chozo grew respectfully silent at his words.

"We torture ourselves for Hatchling's sake." He began gravely in his rasping voice. "Here on Zebes, the whispers of the recently dead are too much temptation for the living. Every day our population shrinks as more of us reject our physical bodies in order to join our deceased friends and family and ancestors. You have all seen this. How many of our brothers and sisters have already succumbed to this despair? How many of you can honestly say that you do not long to leave this dimension as well? I feel the temptation. I feel it each day as it plagues my every waking moment." Crowlus breathed with his beak open, as if the speech had exhausted him. I wondered if it was painful for him to speak. "Misery..." His voice was barely a breath. "It is an agony to remain alive when everyone else is dead."

All the Chozo were silent, their eyes lowered. All were thinking of those who had been lost, those who they might rejoin if they only released the bonds anchoring them to the world. Perhaps those ghosts were whispering to them right now. One of the elders gave an anguished cry and buried his head in his hands.

Of course it's an agony to live when everyone else is dead. I would know. I would know better than any of the Chozo would know.

The others gathered around the despairing Chozo, rubbing their beaks against his in reassurance, lending him the remnants of their own shattered strength. Eventually he stopped shaking and his breathing evened out. He kneeled before Old Bird, who touched the Chozo's forehead with his beak and murmured a spell. Then elder helped him back onto his feet and turned to the others. "We shall be leaving Zebes soon. There may be less ghosts to tempt us when we are away from the planet." Old Bird closed his eyes and opened them slowly. "But I implore all of you to stay strong. For, even if she is not the Defender, Samus is my child, my Hatchling. I will not leave this world until I see her fly on her own."

I've heard enough. I didn't understand most of what they were saying, but I knew when I wasn't wanted. I retreated from the control room and returned to my own chamber. I had few belongings, but I still had the laser, and I managed to take some food plus a small light orb. The Zebesian night was cool, with the clouds hiding the stars and moons. The darkness made it easier for me to move unseen, but clouds also meant the possibility of acid rain. I tightened a little shawl around my neck. I kept an eye on the Chozo sentries, but they were looking for incoming forces, not outgoing people like me. I easily escaped their detection.

Once out of immediate sight, I started running. I ran until the magic of the cloaking technology erased the ship that had been my home for over a year, and I still ran. I pushed the metabolism of my mixed blood, running for miles without stopping or even looking back. Running kept my thoughts at bay. Only when I tripped over a rock was I forced to halt. My face was wet, not with tears, but with perspiration. I knew nothing except the need to get away as far as I could.

My panting breath formed vapors in the air. An icy breeze licked my neck and I realized how cold and tired I was. Where was I, anyways? Where could I go? I had not thought this through very well.

Listlessly, I forced myself up and continued onwards. Anywhere was better than here. This time I walked, for what seemed like a long time, staring at my plodding feet and the endless groundscape cycling beneath me. And then, the scenery suddenly became vertical. I looked up and found myself at the foot of what seemed like an enormous mountain or cliff, but too smooth to be either. I craned my head as far back as it would go and I still couldn't see the top.

This could only be the edge of Chozodia, the cavernous capital of Zebes. It was an ancient ruin even by Chozo standards. Old Bird had shown it to me once, but from a distance. It had me awestruck from the moment I first set eyes upon it. I could feel its power even at a distance; I could feel it almost calling out to me. I had longed to see the contents of the abandoned city for myself.

The mountain of rock which was Chozodia was only a shade deeper than the inky black sky. I ran my hands along the surface of the city, walking around its perimeter until I felt something oddly smooth. That would be the entrance hatch, which I opened with my laser. The inside of the ruins were revealed to me. Somehow it was even darker than the night sky and the black mountain. But I went inside, finding my way by touch.

I could lose myself in Chozodia, or hide. I thought if I hid in the maze- like corridors of the mountain long enough, then the Chozo would eventually give up on finding me and leave, that is, if they bothered to look for me at all. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared, but my resolve was decided and that gave me strength. It was better to die here, peacefully, surrounded by Chozo ghosts and magics, than to be torn apart by Pirate claws. And even that was better than being a burden to the living Chozo. If I really caused them so much pain, then they would be better off without me.

I stumbled along in the dark, following the walls, not really caring where they led. I didn't know how long I wandered. Time meant nothing when the darkness was this complete, shrouding my very senses and sucking at my memory.

But finally, I became hungry and exhausted. I took out the light orb and rubbed my hands over it a few times, resulting in a dim glow which illuminated a few feet radius around me. I wolfed down most of the food I brought, thinking nothing of the future. Who knows what might happen later?

It was probably late night by now. I curled up against a wall, waiting for the light orb to extinguish itself and for sleep to claim me. Neither came as quickly as I wanted them to. Restlessly, I turned to the wall and put my hand against it. Yes, even the stone here had power, much like the stones used to make Chozo statues.

I found it strange how this wall was not covered with reliefs and hieroglyphs, as most other Chozo ruins were. The white limestone was soft, soft enough for me to make marks with my fingernails. I remembered some of the ruins Old Bird showed me, depicting the history and legends, beliefs and visions, the dreams of a thousand generations of Chozo carved on the walls. The more elaborate images portrayed the Chozo with an air of power and mystery. But that's not what they're really like. They were kind and compassionate, but nothing on the walls reflected that. With a finger and untrained hand, I drew into the limestone as I had seen some Chozo do. They were much better at it than I was, since I had neither their synthetic paints nor their pointed talons to draw with. I drew a picture of Old Bird holding my hand, and of Crowlus, speaking as if he enjoyed it. And I drew the sun I had known all my life from my earthbound position on K2-L, a sun which meant clear skies and carefree days which I would never experience again in my life. The drawing finished, I sat back to admire my handiwork.

And finally I cried. The tears flowed freely as if there would be no end, the sobs shaking my fragile little body. I cried for my own failure in serving the Chozo, for all the pain my parents and adoptive parents have gone through, and I cried for my own short, sad, miserable life. No one cared about me. Half the Chozo wanted to get rid of me, and the other half was dying because of me. I did not deserve their care. They need not suffer for my sake anymore; I will do all the suffering for them. The light of the orb disappeared, leaving me lost in the darkness. I fell asleep, alone with nothing but the sound of my own pitiful sobbing.

The next thing I knew, a brilliant light shone into my face, visible even behind closed eyelids. Groaning, I put a hand over my eyes and struggled awake. How long had I slept? Was it morning? Why was there light in this underground chamber?

It turned out that the room was not as deep into the mountain as I had thought; holes high along the walls and ceiling allowed sunlight to shine into the chamber. All the light converged at the center of the main wall, where a convex mirror reflected it like a spotlight directly onto me. I let my eyes adjust to the brightness and stared at my reflection. I walked the length of the room, never gazing away from the mirror. It was designed so that my image was never distorted and I could see the reflection no matter where I went in the chamber.

I slowly became aware of some of the designs on the wall. Appearing to hold the mirror was a huge frontal portrait of a Chozo elder; I could tell his rank by the wings he wore. The rest of his costume was foreign to me, but it consisted of a helmet, breastplate with armored sleeves, and large shoulderguards. It turned out I had graffitied on the bottom of his white robe, thinking that it was nothing but blank stone. I couldn't tear my gaze away from the magnificent image; something about that armor made a sense of longing, and of destiny, rise in my heart. I came up close so the Chozo towered over me and placed a hand on the image.

I heard a sound like the rustling of cloth. I whirled around, and saw Old Bird emerge from the shadows. Our eyes locked for a moment, then he turned his gaze to the immense suited Chozo on the wall. I didn't move. I waited for him to reprimand me or to force me back to the ship, but he only stood there. An expression of such melancholy awe that I had never seen, and would never see again, crossed his face. But he seemed to have forgotten I was there.

"Old Bird?" I said carefully. He gaze settled on me, looking me over as if for the first time. His complexion was of solemn joy. I became frightened. "Old Bird?"

"Samus-san." My father, mentor, friend, spoke with gentleness. He held out his hand. "Come to me." I was compelled to obey.

I took his outstretched hand. He held mine reassuringly, then kneeled down and pulled me close. I grabbed his robe and buried my face against the feathers of his cheek. The feathers were few and grey, but they were still soft. They smelled of the red dust of Zebes and of seed oil and feathers. "Hatchling, my Hatchling," The Chozo elder whispered over and over again as he stroked my hair.

"Old Bird?"

"Yes, Samus-san?"

I swallowed. "I'm sorry I ran away. But I heard you and Crowlus and the other elders..." He didn't let me finish. He gripped my shoulders tightly.

"Hatchling." He said sternly. "Each of us have our own beliefs about what would be best for you and for the Chozo. I suppose you heard that much. But despite all the pragmatic notions we have about how to deal with our situation, there is the fact that we all love you." He saw the doubt in my eyes. His complexion softened. "You question whether or not I speak the truth. Let us return, then. Give the Chozo a chance to prove this to you."

"It's already been proven." I said.

Old Bird looked so happy with those words. Finally, he released me and stood up. He turned slowly to face the wall of reliefs. I followed his gaze. "Tell me what you see." He said.

We stood in silence, hand in hand, staring at the ancient wall paintings. Standing this far back, I could see other, smaller pictures carved around the large Chozo statue which I hadn't noticed before. I described them out loud. "Along the sides of the wall, I see types of Chozo that I've never seen before. They have differently shaped beaks which are sharper and smaller and more curved. They have different patterns and colors of feathers and different shapes of eyes. Maybe they're a different subspecies or from a different planet or maybe this is what Chozo looked like a long time ago." I stole a brief glance at Old Bird to see if this was the answer he wanted to hear. He didn't react so I continued. "I think the ones who are kneeling and in robes are priests. They hold some sort of circle thing. I can't tell if it's an orb, an egg, or the balance of existence. The others... I can't tell what they are. They wear some sort of short robe and shoulderguards. But what are they holding? They're not elders, so it can't be staffs, and they're not old enough for canes..."

"Those are spears." Old Bird said. "Weapons."

My voice grew quiet. "Weapons?"

"Yes," Said my father. "We were once a warrior's culture. But that was a long time ago." He paused. "Tell me what is at the center of the wall."

"The center. There is a very big Chozo with green feathers. He is wearing orange... armor? If there are weapons there should be armor. He wears the wings of elders and a crown-like helmet, and he has a white, um, robe." I faltered, hoping Old Bird wouldn't notice my little drawing at the hem of the robe. He didn't, so I focused on the last feature of the relief. "The elder is holding a mirror. It reflects all the light in the room so that it focuses on one spot in the room. It makes my eyes hurt looking at it directly."

"But what do you see in the mirror?" Old Bird pressed.

"I see me." I said simply. "No matter where I am in the room, the mirror always shows me."

"I see you there as well, Defender."

Old Bird and I turned to leave, the two of us still holding hands. I turned for one last, parting glance at the magnificent Chozo elder, and then all the blood drained out of my face. Somehow I missed this before. Because in the mirror, the image was of me, and my hand was holding onto thin air. Nothing of Old Bird, or even of the ground on which I stood, appeared in the reflection. How was this possible? What kind of mirror would be designed to reflect only... me...?

The next day, the Chozo refugee ship lifted off, never to return to Zebes.


	22. Chapter 22

Samus woke up in the middle of the biosac, screaming, her instincts convinced she was drowning. But this time, before her fear could grow into a full-blown panic, two robotic arms quickly dragged her to the bottom of the sac and flushed her out via the exit tube. She found herself surrounded by air after what seemed like weeks, but was only days, in the biomechanical bubble. Two Chozo attended to her while she coughed out the liquid still in her throat and lungs. Her eyes felt painful in the dryness of the air, causing her to blink and squint often. Her attendants sponged the remaining liquid off her body and provided her with the clothes she had removed prior to entering the biosac. They fed her a watery soup which she practically inhaled from hunger.  
  
An hour later, after recovering from the shock of 'rebirth' into the world, the two attendants carried the bounty hunter to meet with the Chozo elders, insisting that she shouldn't walk just yet. While winding around the mountainous corridors, Veaning caught up to them and was almost bouncing with joy at seeing her friend again.  
  
"Samus! Samus! How are you feeling!" The Chozo slowed her run to a walk to keep pace with the litter Samus was being carried on.  
  
"Oh, I'm feeling good." The bounty hunter took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. "It feels good to breathe again. I can actually smell things now. I'm also hungry, but they won't let me eat anything solid yet." She combed her fingers through her hair. "How long was I in there exactly?"  
  
"You were in the biosac for almost 54 hours. The procedure went very quickly and very well." Veaning answered.  
  
"So am I cured?" Samus leaned so far off the litter that she nearly sent herself tumbling to the ground.  
  
Veaning cocked her head thoughtfully. "You will have to ask the elders."  
  
"Hmm." The bounty hunter answered. "Say, what are you still doing here? I thought you would have returned to your Sheltering Tree already."  
  
"Oh, my father keeps me busy with chores while I am here. My duties back home can wait."  
  
"We have arrived at the Chamber of Sages." One of the attendants informed them. "You had best leave us now, Wind Daughter."  
  
Veaning bowed in acknowledgement and disappeared down another corridor. Samus watched her go but then turned her attention to the exquisite chamber she was brought into. The first thing that caught her attention was the Chozo statue at the opposite end of the room, caressed by natural sunlight filtered in from windows dug out of the mountain. The figure's arms were outstretched as if trying to catch the light, giving it the appearance that its arms were a part of the artificial wings it wore. Its head was raised skyward, as if yearning to flap those wings and ascend to the heavens as Chozo of the past had done before they traded their wings for hands.  
  
Sharp and the other planetary elder stood on a pedestal before the statue, almost like miniature versions of the stone figure. The rest of the elders and specialists formed a loose ring around the power suit which stood conspicuously at the center of the chamber. Samus's attendants lowered their burden in front of the suit.  
  
"How do you feel, our Warrior?" Sharp asked kindly.  
  
"Pretty good, now that I'm out of that bubble." Samus replied as she peeled back the skin hiding the opening to her suit. Will this be the last time her suit featured such an organic covering? "I'll feel much better once I know exactly what changes have been done to me."  
  
"You realize that your time within the biosac was not meant to remove the metroid's DNA." The other planetary elder said. He was an extremely old Chozo, with whatever feathers remaining on his skin a faded grey. But as he talked, he stood up straight and powerful, unmoving save for his beak. His face was permanently severe, weathered by sun, snow, and space. "We successfully infused your genetic code with that of the Ultimate Warrior's so we could set some of the foreign genes as recessive. But we were unable to suppress them all in this fashion." For some reason, people didn't have a nickname for him. He was referred to by his given name, which was Aldornis.  
  
"However, I believe you will find the results satisfactory, or at least tolerable." Sharp added. "Your ability to feed off a ghost's bonds will no longer be uncontrollable or even necessary. You may never use it again, or you might find it useful in some situations, especially when you are not wearing your suit."  
  
"So I won't go crazy and accidentally eat someone again? And I won't become weak if I don't drain energy?" Previously, the Chozo had been bringing her small, live animals for her to drain so she wouldn't starve to death. Those animals would be put to sleep first, because it turned out that they would not feel the pain while they were asleep.  
  
"That is correct." Aldornis said. "Your metroid-like behaviors are completely optional now."  
  
Samus had a hard time tucking her hair into her suit without something to tie it up. She put on her helmet and still a few loose strands were caught on the outside. But as soon as she did, her suit began to transform before her very eyes. The elders murmured amongst themselves as they watched the amazing metamorphosis. The numerous archivists worked their holographic equipment. The changes did not occur suddenly, but fast enough for an almost fluid ripple to be seen over the suit's surface where something was about to grow or disappear.  
  
Samus wondered if her suit would return to what it used to look like before the X infection, but that was unlikely due to the large portions of it that were simply removed. And it would still remain somewhat more organic, with the metroid blood controlled, but still free within her blood. The first changes were subtle, such as the shape of her visor widening slightly to give her a better range of vision. What seemed like orange metallic plates formed over the suit's shoulders and back, returning its appearance back into something more mechanical, yet evolutionarily elegant. She regained the spiked knees she once had. The arm blades remained on her left arm and her helmet still had the mandibles, although they were now segmented to allow for more movement. An armored chest-plate regrew over Samus's upper torso, leaving her waist less protected but with greater flexibility.  
  
Samus rotated her shoulders and shook out her arms and legs, finding that the interlocking plates did not interfere with her movement at the joints. She rolled into a morph ball and found those plates covering her ball as well. She wondered how much defense those additions provided. It was almost without doubt that the metal plates were a legacy of her old power suit, as well as coming under the influence of the armor of evolved metroids.  
  
"How does it feel, Warrior?" Sharp asked.  
  
"It feels..." The Warrior coiled her legs and bounded into the air, somersaulting into an impressive screw attack before landing. "Efficient. These plates don't seem to make the suit any heavier."  
  
"They might be, but your suit will automatically adjust your gravity so it does not seem so to you." Aldornis replied. "Are you satisfied with the results?"  
  
"Yes. Yes, I think so."  
  
A general murmur of approval rose from the other Chozo, with especially satisfied voices coming from those who performed the grunt work of adjusting Samus's suit and DNA. Aldornis tapped his cane and they all fell silent. "Then let me ask you a question, Hatchling." He said. "I understand that you were brought to this planet by the Dachoras and Etecoons because of your power suit malfunction. But now that you are healed, many paths lie open to your future. What do you intend to do now?"  
  
A wry grin of confidence appeared on the bounty hunter's face. She took off her helmet. "I intend to go immediately to the remains of SR388, or what you call Troidemis. They say that the Eaters might have survived. I intend to do something about that."  
  
Wind Elder, standing in the crowd, nodded his head in approval. Sharp smiled. "We had been hoping you would say that. Because, regretfully, we have a favor to ask of you, which only you can accomplish." She said. "Are you willing to do this for us, Warrior?"  
  
"Yes." Samus immediately replied. "Anything." Debts must be repaid.  
  
Aldornis spoke in his statuesque manner, his tone neutral. "You may have wondered why so many elders have gathered to oversee your recovery when it is mostly the biologists and technicians who specialize in the alterations of your suit and genetics. The truth is, we have gathered not only to resolve the problem of your suit, but also to discuss what should be done in response to some of your actions. You see, you are our Defender, but the results of some of your actions troubles us Chozo."  
  
Samus opened her mouth to say something in her defense, but the elder held up a hand for silence. "Do not worry. We will not ask you to apologize, nor explain the reasons behind what you have done in the past. We know your intentions are nothing but good. However, we ask that you do what you can in order to fix the problem you have created. And that is the nature of the favor we are asking of you."  
  
"Of course." Samus said. She wondered what she had done to gain the Chozo's disapproval. Was it the destruction of Zebes? Perhaps. She would be just devastated if they thought badly of her. But hell, she had a whole list of questionable things she had done in the past. If there was something she could do to regain her image, "Just tell me what I need to do."  
  
The crowd of Chozo parted for Wind Elder, who came forward with something held delicately in his claws. "Ah, Hatchling. We have but one simple request. This is something we have poured our efforts into while you were in the biosac. We need you to deliver this to SR388." He placed the grapefruit-sized orb in Samus's hands and closed her fingers around it. The object was warm and softly glowing. "To you we entrust our hope for the future. Care for it well." She held it for a moment, uncomprehending, before she realized what the thing was. Her eyes widened and she backed away, nearly dropping the object if not for Wind Elder's hands still wrapped around her own.  
  
"My God. Oh my God."  
  
It was a metroid egg.

............

Like an ugly scar formed over pristine snow, the Space Pirates have built their research laboratories in the heart of Phendrana Drifts. What they were researching on, I had little idea, although I had a hunch. They kept on refering to their experiments as xenomes and numbers. The holograms on the wall appeared both familiar and foreign to me at the same time. It filled me with a dark sense of foreboding which I couldn't quite place a finger on nor dismiss. I felt like I was missing something.  
  
A primitive combustion-based engine laboured to work the elevator I was using to reach the control tower. It was Pirate in design, which meant its technology was stolen, patched, and stripped of all beauty until it was sheer practicality. The machine's harsh rumbling contrasted sharply with the sleek efficiency of my varia suit, built by Chozo, whose technology surpassed those of any known civilization's.  
  
The elevator finally jolted to a stop at the top of the control tower and I let myself out of the hatch. Surprised by the sudden brightness of the open sky, I put a hand over my eyes and squinted. Moisture-laden clouds gathered close to the distant snow-covered mountains in an impenetrable mist, so that it was near impossible to distinguish sky from land. The Tallon sun stained part of the atmosphere rust yellow and orange, while the lava pits of Magmoor Carverns burned red in the distance, forming crimson clouds of their own. Indigenous birds flickered across that mosaic of sky, endlessly trilling their joy in flight. Gorgeous. I could just sit here and watch all day.  
  
Without warning, the birds screeched in alarm and scattered in all directions. I tensed up, charging my wave beam. Sure enough, three Flying Pirates appeared in the sky out of nowhere, hissing and growling to each other in their guttural language.  
  
"Come down where I can reach you, bastards!" I screamed up at them, even though they couldn't understand.  
  
Flying Pirates were almost laughable up close, for they were some of the smallest and most fragile subspecies of Pirates. Their thin frame had very little muscle and their exoskeletons would collapse in the heat of close combat. But all of those were sacrifices for making them light enough to fly. They were support and reconnaissance troops, armed with projectile weapons so they would never have to face close combat.  
  
The three Pirates tried to surround me. I put my back to a wall and shot the nearest attacker, stunning it temporarily. I jumped behind one of the many storage crates and morphed into the maru mari, quickly rolling out of the way. The Pirates were confused by my sudden change into a morph ball, and I took the opportunity to blast open one of the crates full of explosives. A nearby Pirate was instantly blown out of the sky. It roared as it fell, abruptly falling silent when it crashed into the rock cliffs below.  
  
The remaining two showered me with missiles and lasers, some of which hit but didn't cause much damage to my suit. I used my power beam to return their fire, since it fired faster than the wave beam. One Pirate couldn't take anymore, and tried to take me down with it in a suicidal dive. I threw myself out of its way, and its jetpack exploded in a display of fire and broken limbs.  
  
The final Flying Pirate hesitated, its pale eyes uncertain. I guessed that it was torn between self-preservation and the instinct to fight for its race. Surely it knew that I had survived Pirate attacks much more vicious than three meager Flyers. It had no chance against me. Yet, to run away was to commit treason, and treason was punishable by death.  
  
Whatever conclusion the Pirate arrived at, it was never acted upon. One of my missiles connected with its head and the rest of its body fell uselessly to the ground, twitching in its death throes. I grinned in fierce satisfaction, pleased with my handiwork. I shook my beam cannon free of smoke and stepped over the Pirate carcasses without looking at them. There was no point in collect their claws now; I was already storing as many as my suit could handle at one time. I entered another elevator that would take me deeper into the Pirate establishment, to Research Labs Aether.  
  
I sauntered rather casually through the entrance to the laboratory, not really caring if anything would hear me. I'm not too big on stealth, and I would rather have my victims hear me and experience a moment's fear before I'd attack. But I was careless. I walked right past a bio containment tube, which I assumed was empty like all the others. Then something inside it squealed.  
  
I stopped.  
  
I focused all my attention on the tube, and watched the creature contained inside float lazily up to my eye level, as if it was somehow observing me as well. It certainly sensed me in some way. A faint purple phazon glow marked the path of the energy it expelled. Two pairs of mandibles clicked impatiently, and it nudged the sides of the tube as if testing its strength.  
  
"Holy shit." I gasped. It all made sense now. The tight-lipped secrecy of the Pirates, their obsession with infusing phazon with various creatures, and their choice of the frozen Phendrana region to build their lab. They were studying metroids. It was undeniable.  
  
I'm sure my mouth was hanging wide open in shock. I had hoped I'd seen the last of those energy-draining parasites back on Zebes, where the Pirates were creating an army of them. They were utilized with such efficiency that no Federation ships could get near Zebes at all. That was why I was hired to do what a hundred men could not. With my power suit, I could at least escape from the grasp of a metroid. But it didn't make them any less deadly, nor painful.  
  
And it seemed as if some of the infusion experiments were becoming successful. I realized that those uncannily familiar holograms on the walls depicted metroids mutated into new and perhaps more effective forms. My thoughts turned to the Parasite Queen back on Frigate Orpheon, where the Pirates were able to create an uncontrollable behemoth from near-harmless parasites. What kind of horrific creation will they make of the metroids?  
  
The metroid before me was expelling wisps of phazon. I scanned it, hoping my suit would provide me with some information on what kinds of mutations were taking place. Before I was even able to read the scanned data, there was a deafening shatter of glass, and a piercing shriek. In the amount of time it took me to focus my eyes, the metroid rammed into me with force enough to push back my upper torso. Its lower fangs dug into the sides of my helmet, its body beginning to glow with energy acquired. And that's when I started screaming.

............

Samus took the metroid egg back with her to her home atop the Sheltering Tree. The whole journey from the mountains and up the Tree barely registered in the bounty hunter's rapidly churning mind. She never took her eyes off the egg. It was almost hypnotic the way she stared at it. She placed the egg on a shelf in her house and sat on the bed, staring numbly at the precious bundle in front of her, lost in thought. It didn't exactly resemble a real metroid egg, of course. The shell was made of a transparent plastic and wrapped in a sticky coating to help insulation. Faint outlines of the metroid fangs and nuclei could already be seen. Occasionally, the embryo would shudder within its shell, proof of the tiny life developing inside.  
  
Samus couldn't stop staring at the egg. In some strange twist of fate, she might be able to consider herself the metroid's real mother. She had learned that its genetic material was extracted from her own blood without her knowledge while she was inside the biosac. And in addition, the metroid would be identical to her previous child, Hatchling. Samus received the metroid vaccine from the Federation who had collected it from Hatchling back on Ceres.  
  
The Chozo wanted her to repopulate SR388 with metroids to control the X infestation. The whole situation was just dripping with irony. First Samus killed metroids, then she raised the last metroid, then she partially became a metroid, then she killed off all the metroids again, and now she inadvertently breathed life into the last remaining member of the species with which her life had been so intertwined. It seemed as if the fates had been keeping the metroids within the bounty hunter's life ever since her genocide mission on SR388.  
  
"Okay, I get your point!" She yelled out loud to whatever divinities were listening. And she knew there had to be some within earshot. "I will take care of the last metroid!" Her house was probably choked with Chozo Ghosts right now, watching both their Defender as well as their precious metroid legacy. The number of holy sites on this planet certainly didn't help reduce the ghost population.  
  
Samus breathed in deeply and exhaled the air through her clenched teeth. She felt angry. Angry and violated that the Chozo would take the metroid DNA from her blood without her permission. And how they acted so casual about her situation, pretending that her role in it was to simply deliver the egg to its natural planet. A simple courier mission. She could stay detached if she wanted to, leaving the newly hatched larvae to fend for itself once she completed her mission. But she felt the burden of responsibility like a world on her shoulders, and the Chozo knew she could not turn a blind eye to the metroid's fate. After all, who would defend it from opportunists like the Space Pirates and the Galactic Federation? She was obliged to protect the metroid from triggering another potential disaster.  
  
But Samus knew her forgiveness of the Chozo would come quick. She could not stay mad at the race who had raised her, and to whom she would forever feel indebted to. They always had a good reason for everything they did, even if the reason was obscure or far-reaching. But there was something the Chozo probably didn't know about her. They didn't know she would care for the egg simply out of love. Or maybe they did know. Maybe they presented her with this egg not as a curse or a mockery, but as a genuine gift of hope. After all, here she's being given another chance to raise this infant despite her failure in her previous attempt. Already she felt herself growing attached to the not-yet-hatched metroid, and knew that nothing, no one shall ever take her child away from her again. She knew this silently, instinctively, within her heart.  
  
She had lost one child already. It didn't matter if the child wasn't biologically hers or even of the same species. The pain of loss was still there; she sometimes felt as if she could tear herself apart from the anguish. She thought nothing would ever placate her after Hatchling's death.  
  
Samus picked up the egg and held it close to her. She could feel her heart beating against the shell, or was it the metroid's heart? Do metroids even have a heart? Probably not physically, but metaphorically, yes. This she knew personally, as a fact. She settled herself for sleep, with her arms curled around the metroid egg. It felt warm against her flesh. She could have sworn she had heard a faint 'squee' from within the shell and felt a surge of joy unlike any she experienced before. The tears welled in her eyes, but she fought them back. If she was the kind of woman who made it a habit of crying, then she would have done so already.


	23. Chapter 23

During one of the seasonal electric storms that wandered over the planet's surface, the Sheltering Tree was engulfed in what seemed like a perpetual night. The already misty atmosphere was choked in clouds so low and thick that no element of space could penetrate the coal-black barrier. Wreaths of glowvines and other light sources illuminated populated areas, making Trees and temples shine like beacons over a dark, tumultuous ocean. The weather halted the wind, resulting in a silence which was almost painful to those who were used to the constant howling.

And yet, often when least expected, the silence and darkness were broken by sudden explosions of sound and light. This was not like the thunder of other worlds, in which bolts drew themselves from the heavens down to the earth. The thunder of this planet was made of condensed electricity, orbs of brilliance which sometimes detonated high in the sky, and sometimes only meters from the treetops. The humid air crackled with charged ions. The sky was a sparkling black and neon lightshow.

There weren't many people watching it, however. The Dachoras were sleeping out the storm in their nest of twigs and feathers of their own and of Chozo origin. Family groups of Chozo huddled together as they slept, keeping each other warm with their body heat and feathers. Those who ventured outside deliberately flared their feathers into fluffy balls of down for protection against the damp and the electricity. The Etecoons, however, were perched on the highest branch of the Sheltering Tree, watching fascinated, their fur standing on end, as the blackened skies and treetops beneath them suddenly lit up with the flash of a thunderball.

Samus Aran did not enjoy the weather. Being mostly human and lacking any exterior protection, she suffered particularly from the storm. Every electric discharge felt like a shock to her skin, even when a thunderball originated as far as a mile away. Her hair refused to obey her until she knotted it into a tight bun, and still individual strands stuck out whenever they found the opportunity. She became vaguely jealous of the Chozo, who were all dry and comfortable in their natural coat of insulating feathers. They were probably all sleeping soundly through this storm, whereas the bounty huntress found it nearly impossible to do so. Tossing and turning, she tried to seek refuge in her feathered cloak, but it wasn't big enough to cover her whole body. Her bare feet were left unprotected, and they nearly kicked a hole in the wall when they were jolted into sudden movement. With a grunt of frustration, Samus eventually retreated to her power suit and sealed herself inside, away from the current environment. But her tendency of sleeping lightly, a habit which had saved her on several occasions, woke her with the sound of every electric explosion.

God, it was going to be a long night. Finally, deafness borne of exhaustion allowed her to ignore the storm to some extent. Her eyes were just beginning to droop when she heard another crash, this time very close, but very soft. She was about to ignore it when her mind registered the fact that the sound was of a different quality. She roused enough to see a fragment of eggshell fall to the floor, and was instantly awake. The metroid egg shook precariously on the platform it was placed on, threatening to fall at any moment. With one quick motion, Samus desperately lunged, landing with an "oof!" on her stomach, watching wide-eyed as the egg tumbled off the shelf... right into her outstretched hand.

The woman paused for a moment, breathed in deeply, and sighed out long and slow. She shakily rose to her feet. "Shit that was close." She said with teeth clenched and eyes slitted. Way too close. It didn't speak well of her parenting skills if she's to let her child fall off shelves like that. But then again, metroids are durable critters; it'd take more than a little fall to hurt them.

Without really paying any attention to where she sat, Samus flopped onto her bed, her gaze never leaving the precious bundle as it trembled in her hands. She absently shed the beam cannon from her right arm and took off her helmet, letting them drop to the floor. She was fascinated by the metroid's thirst for life, its hunger for freedom. An errant smile formed over her features. How strong the little child was, fighting for the very right to exist. Samus mused about how in humans, it was the mother who endured the agony of childbirth, but metroids were destined to emerge into the world by themselves. This mother couldn't do anything to help it. The Chozo forbid her from tearing apart the shell herself, although her fingers itched to do so and spare her child the painful effort.

The egg was no longer transparent, but it had slowly turned greenish opaque as the days to hatching drew nearer. The metroid squirmed furiously. A thick, inner membrane still held most of the shell together, forcing its occupant to chew through the egg skin with its weak, tiny fangs. Areas free of shell glowed brilliant green and purple, shockingly bright in the smothering darkness around it. Egg fluid oozed from the cracks, and for some odd reason, Samus experienced the weirdest urge to lick it off. She shook her head and chuckled. That must be a rogue metroid instinct which the Chozo forgot to 'deactivate' while she was in the biosac. But it made sense; she could imagine older metroids welcoming and encouraging a hatching child by licking it clean. As an alternative, the bounty hunter put the metroid into a ceramic bowl and filled it with warm water. Gently with her fingers, she washed the emerging lifeform free of fluid.

A single quivering fang forced its way out and clawed at the egg's exterior. The fractures in the shell widened and eventually, all four mandibles were free, but they stretched out limply as if exhausted. Suddenly, the metroid cried out, one long, clear note which rang into the silent night. Samus's heart skipped a beat. She listened as it cried again, voicing its fears, its pain and its longings. How long had it been since she last heard that sound? Years ago, she remembered, soon after she had killed the Metroid Queen, she heard Hatchling's first cry echoing in those lifeless caverns. She had answered that call with her presence, and from then on, Hatchling had a mother.

"Calm yourself, little one. I'm here for you." Her voice cracked once and she swallowed quickly. She gently splashed some water onto the metroid's dome body, gingerly washing away the last bits of shell and fluid.

The metroid rested for a few moments, then floated upwards with water dripping off its delicately sculpted fangs. Its lime-hued glow cast flickering shadows everywhere in the darkened little house. It started flying around in lazy circles, and for a moment, Samus was afraid that the metroid had not imprinted upon her. Her fears were soon alleviated for, in the next moment, her child zipped towards her and latched onto her right shoulder blade, squeaking happily all the while.

The metroid was so small. Samus's comparatively large, gloved hand covered it easily, blocking out its pulsing glow and muffling its near-continuous squeeing. She simply held it for a while, letting touch confirm that her baby truly existed and wasn't part of some dream. A sigh of contentment passed her lips and she closed her eyes, wanting to savor this moment forever. But the metroid, being such an energetic creature, couldn't sit still any longer and struggled out from underneath Samus's hand.

"Squee, squee!" The metroid began haphazardly orbiting its mother's head, still emitting its mewling squeaks. Samus smiled, and then laughed softly. She suddenly snatched the child out of midair, twirled once on one foot, and flopped back-first onto her bed. The infant shrieked indignantly at the rough treatment, only making the bounty hunter laugh harder. She released the metroid and tucked her hands behind her head, watching the baby draw circles in the dark with its lively glow.

Samus let a grin play over her features and she thought herself content. But a twinge of pain, previously undetected, gradually made itself known in her heart. Her eyes flickered closed as she exhaled slowly. How could she be happy, how dare she. How dare she enjoy this moment, letting this new child replace the memory of her old one, of Hatchling. It wasn't right. It wasn't fair to desecrate the memory, to replace it, to warp it into... into something that wouldn't tear at her insides. Something which needn't be buried anymore, something which she might actually enjoy, as she now enjoyed watching her offspring as it danced above her, blithely ignorant of everything except its own joy in existence.

She had thought that the painful memories would subside somewhat with her new child, but it only flared up fiercer than ever, consuming, berating her, blaming her. She sullenly realized that it would be impossible for her to completely forget her failure with Hatchling. It would exist forever within her as a reminder, and a part of her was glad for it. She allowed the guilt to invade her body, let it ravage inside her until her eyes moistened and she found it hard to swallow. If she wouldn't forget, then she wouldn't make the same mistake again. She could not afford to lose any more of her children.

A thunderball suddenly erupted, loud enough to induce deafness, creating instant shadows which disappeared in the next instant. Samus flinched involuntarily and blinked out the spots in her eyes. She belatedly wished she had kept her helmet on for her cheek muscles twitched painfully from the intensity of the shock. But the metroid was so startled that it lunged for its mother, and struck her directly on the lips, clinging to her as if its life depended on it.

"Mmmph!" Samus put a hand to her mouth and felt only metroid.

"Yiii...!" The infant, frightened by the sound and/or electric shock, refused to let go. Samus could only manage to shove it under her chin, leaving red scratch marks along the sides of her jaw. But with the metroid wrapped around her neck, at least her breathing could still function normally.

The feather robe was near at hand and was soon used to protect her exposed head and metroid. Her world was reduced to all she could see beneath the robe, all of it illuminated by a metroid's eerie light. She felt the baby still shivering at her jugular, its squeaking so quiet that it was barely audible. She frowned slightly.

"That's just a natural phenomenon." She said, as if attempting to dispel her child's fears with logic. "There's no reason to be afraid. No one has ever been seriously injured by the thunder of this planet. Especially not metroids." The infant stopped moving for a moment. Then it relaxed its grip somewhat and squeaked at an odd note, as if surprised. "Once you grow older, you'll find that nothing can hurt you. Only one thing has ever managed to hurt metroids." Samus smiled, softly and sadly. "But I promise you that she'll never hurt you. I promise you that you'll never need to fear anything."

The infant squealed again and drummed its mandibles against human skin, much like how restless fingers would drum against a table. Samus laughed, making her new charge squeak even more, and realized that it was the vibration of her voice that pleased it so much.

"You like feeling me talk?" A squeak of confirmation answered her. "What should I say? I'm not the most talkative of people..." Well, words were not necessary for the metroid who didn't understand them. After a moment of consideration, she took a slow breath, tilted her head back, and started humming. The infant fell attentively silent to hear her.

The song was an old Chozo melody which she had long forgotten the lyrics to, but the tune was one which she would never be lost to her. Old Bird, with his surprisingly clear warbling voice, had once used it to lullaby her to sleep. The song existed on the edge of her consciousness, a whisper, a memory so faint that it disappeared every time she tried to grasp it.

As one song ended, another began, another which she could not remember. Pretty soon, one melody merged into the next with no end and no beginning, and the huntress wasn't sure if she really learned those songs or was making them up on the spot. The watery light inside the cloak dimmed as the metroid became more inactive. Samus's music grew slower and sleepier, the notes losing their tune as her concentration wavered. She heard a rumble of thunder in the far distance and felt vaguely relieved that the storm was moving on.

When she woke, the storm was indeed gone, for natural light poured into her house, causing her to blink. She could see it because the feathered cloak had been loosely flung away from her face. She sat up abruptly. Where's her metroid?!...

She heard something land in front of her house, turned towards it, and saw the metroid shriek its bloodcurdling cry as it lunged forward at the intruder. Samus barely had time to shout a warning before the metroid hit its target. Veaning recoiled from the impact, muttered something akin to, "Not again." and crumpled to the floor with the parasite at her neck.

"Shit! Veaning!" Samus was up and beside the Chozo instantly, trying to pry the metroid off her friend. She attempted to wedge her hand between them, trying to pull one off the other and only succeeding in having protoplasmic flesh ooze between her fingers.

Veaning's eyes were still open and she attempted to smile. "Let the child be." She said weakly. "Chozo can not be killed by Warriors..."

Samus's lips tightened to a thin line as she registered the words, but reluctantly backed off. Veaning was on the floor, seemingly unconscious, and the metroid was still sucking at her energy but with little success. It screeched in frustration at being unable to feed, its mandibles twisting and clenching for a better hold on its victim. And then, the larvae abruptly surrendered with a whimper, falling onto its back with its fangs curled up like a stunned beetle. Samus picked it up with both hands, carefully, but with her fingers caged around it to prevent escape.

Veaning rose to her feet and gingerly rubbed the wound the metroid inflicted, which wasn't far from where Samus bit her a few weeks ago. The bounty hunter stared at the injury with a thoughtful frown. "You okay?"

Veaning bobbed her head, shaking loose a few bloody feathers. "Metroids have to learn that Chozo can not be eaten. Little Warrior will not attack other Chozo anymore, now that it has tasted me."

"That's a relief." Samus muttered dryly. "I'm fine when I'm surrounded by Chozo here, but I'll be up to my neck in lawsuits if I unleash this critter anywhere remotely near Federation territory."

"Try to be careful." Was all the advice Veaning would give. She reached into the pouch strapped to her side and retrieved something wrapped in broad, tea-colored leaves. She came closer and nudged the metroid shyly with her beak, welcoming it as she would any newly hatched Chozo, yet wary of another attack. The child revived slightly from the touch and buried itself deeper into Samus's hands, as if shunning Veaning for not being able to absorb her energy.

"A present," Veaning explained, almost apologetically. "Since my energy is not sufficient, I offer you this in my stead." She unwrapped the leaves to reveal a multi-legged animal, one of the furry, vertebrae caterpillars which inhabited the canopies. It was motionless, drugged into a sleep so it won't feel the pain of losing its ghost. The metroid immediately roused and took interest in the fresh source of energy, floating upwards with newfound enthusiasm. It circled this prey once, cautious this time, and lunged.

Chozo and human watched the noisy feeding combination of metroid and caterpillar. The infant was a messy eater, and if it actually used its fangs for chewing rather than gripping, then there would probably be a large splattering of blood and gore on the wooden floor for Samus to clean up later. Thankfully, the caterpillar corpse was left mostly intact once the child was finished with it. Veaning wrapped it up in the leaves again and commented on how its flesh could still be eaten even though its ghost was gone. Just then, Wind Elder landed in front of the doorway, brandishing a similar leaf-wrapped package.

"Ah, I am too late. Little Warrior has already eaten." The elder observed, staring mournfully at his own present. "A pity that the metroid can not accept all the offerings it will be presented. Eating too much at a time would unbalance it." He glanced curiously at the hovering metroid, who pointedly ignored the Chozo in favor of returning to its mother's side. "How about you, Defender? Have you eaten yet?" He thrust his caterpillar at Samus, who backed away.

She eyed the package warily. "Eat it? Just like that? Shouldn't I cook it first?" It's not that the bounty hunter was squeamish about eating raw, live flesh (she's done it before), but it seemed somewhat below Chozo standards to do these sort of things.

"You misunderstand," Wind Elder said with a hint of laughter in his voice. "I mean you can absorb its energy, like a metroid does."

"Oh. But I," Samus hesitated, then sighed. "I'd rather not. I'm afraid I'll become addicted."

"Addicted?" The elder cocked his head, a very bird-like gestrue.

"I understand her, Father." Veaning said. "Like how one who is blind and can suddenly see might thirst for color, Sister has aquired a new sense which she has never experienced before. And a thirst for removing ghosts can too easily be carelessly used."

"Ah." Wind Elder said, both proud of his daughter's insight and abashed that he did not come to the same conclusion earlier. In place of the caterpillar, he offered Samus some condensed Lann which was a suitable enough breakfast for the three of them.

Both Chozo watched the human/larvae pair with curiosity and a bit of reverence. As Samus swallowed, the metroid clinging to her neck bobbed like an adam's apple, purring with sleepy contentment. Wind Elder smiled appreciatively. "It eases my heart to see one of the Ultimate Warriors in existence again."

"Do metroids really mean that much to the Chozo?" Samus asked, lightly caressing the larvae at her neck. It seems to have claimed the bounty hunter's throat as its favorite perch, snuggling under her chin like a swollen jugular.

Wind Elder stroked the baby with his beak, moving upwards so he grazed the skin of Samus's cheek. "All the Chozo of this planet descend from the former inhabitants of Troidemis. If not for the Ultimate Warriors, we would not exist today. The Eaters would have destroyed our ancestors."

"Ah. No wonder."

"As a matter of fact, we are preparing a special ceremony to celebrate Little Warrior's hatching."

"A ceremony? Like, a party?"

"I suppose. It would be a celebration with you and your new child as guests of honour."

Samus blinked at the concept. She had never attended any of the more frivolous Chozo events; her Zebes forefathers were a relatively despondent bunch. Events she had attended mostly included council meetings and funerals. And yet, she couldn't quite imagine her solemn adopted race and her working definition of 'party' in the same sentence.

"There shall be food and performances and displays of artistic creations from all over this planet and beyond." There was a certain eagerness in Wind Elder's expression, like a child anticipating a birthday party. "There shall be prayers for you and your metroid's well-being, and gifts for both of..."

"Is this going to be tonight?" Samus asked abruptly.

"Yes. Most of the preparations are already complete. We have been expecting the Warrior to emerge at around this time."

"So soon after hatching..." Samus muttered. She put a hand thoughtfully to her chin, but rested it on the larvae. "Will all this excitement be too soon for my metroid?" The words slipped out of her mouth, mildly surprising her. It had been so long since Hatchling had left her. She thought she had long abandoned her 'mothering' attitude, but now, to her bemusement, she picked up right where she left off. Already she was worrying about the needs and comfort of her offspring. This would take a bit of getting used to. She was no longer the most important person in her life.

Veaning and her father left to prepare for the upcoming event, leaving Samus a few hours of private time with her child. It was a bit of a sombring experience for her, even as she watched the infant explore its vast new world, full of the infectious joy and energy of the young. She kept on expecting it to squeal at a certain pitch, to emit a particular hue, and to land on her head, not neck. It was different from Hatchling, and Samus noted all those minute differences, remorseful, still grieving. It would take a while for her to grow used to this new metroid generation.


	24. Chapter 24

Crowlus and I wandered aimlessly on this newly discovered planet, the two of us skipping nimbly from rock to rock. It wasn't as easy as it sounds. The stronger gravity was making us work for every foot of distance we put behind us. I was already covered with sweat and Crowlus's beak was hanging open, panting in the heat. We both were carrying canes, but we held them like swords instead of using them to climb.

The planet was as silent as space. Old Bird said the world was still in a passive state, meaning that the life had not yet evolved past primitive plants and microorganisms. There were no birds, no insects, no animals. I felt their absence like a glaring void. There was no sound save for the occasional brush of wind and my own heavy breathing. I jumped in surprise when a rock I dislodged fell crashing off the mountain. It was deafening in comparison to the silence. The crash still rung in my ears long after the boulder had settled. I suppose this soundless world could be considered empty to some, as empty as death. Planets should be alive.

But this place was an Eden compared to some of the rocks I would eventually come to know.

We finally reached a plateau on the mountain. It was hidden, isolated like a tide pool, but covered in a carpet of yellow, noodle-like vines. I looked to Crowlus and he nodded without saying a word. He walked across the field of vines, inspecting it, while I stood where he left me. I did not relax. I knew what was happening next. Without warning, Crowlus leaped high into the air, hanging for a moment like a winged Chozo of legend, and brought his cane down over my head. I defended against his blow in a motion almost too quick to see and rolled to the side, trying to counter with an attack of my own. He saw this coming, of course, and hooked his weapon on mine. He could have pulled it away, but that would have been unfair considering how he was much stronger than me. He let me escape and regain my balance. We stared at each other from opposite sides of the field.

I was getting frustrated. I wanted to impress him by beating him, but I knew I couldn't because I never did. But hell, that's never stopped me from trying.

Crowlus lunged at me again, making his attack very obvious so I could block it. Instead of doing what he wanted, I simply ducked under the blow, taking advantage of my small size, and aimed for the Chozo's ankle. He jerked his leg away just in time, but that left him on one foot, off balance. Gleefully anticipating victory, I brought my cane down hard on Crowlus's remaining leg. He fell forward, about to land on his shoulder, when his knee shot out and connected with my stomach. I would have fallen if a pair of taloned hands had not suddenly caught me from behind.

Old Bird lifted me by my arms and placed me down gently. He seemed to have come out of nowhere, as if he had flown in using the decorative wings he was wearing. "Grey Voice, are you training our Newborn too hard again?" The elder said as he fussingly brushed the dirt off my once-immaculate white tunic. "She needs at least a few victories else she will not develop her self esteem."

I was still coughing from being kicked in the guts. Crowlus ruffled his feathers, causing a cloud of dust to form around him. I smiled and he clicked his beak back at me. Then he cocked his head at Old Bird, as if asking, "Why are you here?"

"Samus-san, I want to show you something." Old Bird said. He took out several documents from his robe and kneeled down so he was at my level. "Grey Voice, you might like to see this as well."

Crowlus came over and peered curiously over Old Bird's shoulder. I squeezed in closer to get a better view of the papers. "Old Bird, what is this?" I couldn't make out what all the writings and symbols were. My face twisted into an expression of thinking, as if I could understand it if I simply concentrated hard enough. It was obviously the schematics for some sort of machine, or at least a blueprint of something.

Crowlus seemed to understand and nodded his head in approval, although he said nothing, as usual. Old Bird explained it to me instead. He shuffled his papers until he found a page with one hand-drawn picture on it, no words or anything. The picture looked something like a robot. "Hatchling, we have been working on this for you for some time now. The research team and I have just completed the calculations needed to convert a power suit built for a Chozo into one suitable for a human. See? Soon this will be yours."

"Oh..." I held the picture daintily by the corners, staring at the rough sketch. Little did I comprehend what reality this image would mean to me in the future. "Old Bird, why do I need a power suit? It's been forever since the Chozo last used these things."

The elder absently stroked my hair. "That is true. But I will not be around to protect you for all time. One day we will be gone, and you will leave to travel far. And you shall see the stars. I have foreseen this. You will need all the protection you can get." But before I could feel too sombre about my predicted future, Old Bird winked at me and said, "Think of it as an early pairing present."

"Gul'Gen!" I cried, using his real name.

"What is the matter, Hatchling?" He teased, his voice laughingly innocent. "Don't you want to raise a nest of chicks some day?"

"Well...I dunno. Maybe, but..." I shifted from foot to foot, distressed. My two teachers watched me intently. "...But what Chozo would ever want to be my mate?" I finally blurted.

Both of them suddenly started laughing. I stared at them, not realizing what was so funny. It would be a while later before I figured it out.

..............

"...est chein to corofarna meri almandeens. Zhe ahshes hagatendo." Aldornis said in a voice that resonated, carrying far to the very edges of the crowd which gathered to hear him.

"...a parting of ways does not truly separate those who are bound by kinship. Such a bond is stronger than any worldly substance." Veaning translated, whispering in Samus's ear. The huntress did not nod in acknowledgement, but discreetly moistened her lips.

"Uman Chozo selebava t'ler eshtina ji puolonuran. Feea leaane co tardaru. Insord ammatii feea unpur." The elder looked very much like a crane with his neck outstretched, eyes focused, and thin beak poised to spear the next unsuspecting fish. He did not actually look at anything, anything material, that is, not when he's this deep in vision.

"A child of the Chozo stands here with us tonight. One whose deeds span time and space. One who risks herself to accomplish what we can not." Veaning and Samus stood on a platform at the head of the crowd, along with the elders and various other assorted individuals. The single human was wearing her power suit, although the helmet was off. Artificial lights were glowing brightly in the hazy blackness of night. But for the first time Samus could remember, the stars actually penetrated the planet's constant barrier of clouds. She suspected that the unusually clear weather was the result of either Chozo technology or ghost magic.

"Yalee, coorraa Metroid histamean a to deb wamonen. Aftin pent just loreen ohn hun. La da Metroid menehir ifaro leaane to Chozo umbrev'ado sharra."

"My brothers and sisters, look upon the Ultimate Warrior who has been returned to us from oblivion. Rejoice in the revival of an old era. And may the Ultimate Warrior watch over the Chozo until the twilight of our race and beyond." Veaning's voice sounded as enraptured as Aldornis's. Her eyes were glazed and her breathing was steady as if she could see the future as well as the elder could. Perhaps she was practicing her own futuresight skills.

The metroid hatchling was resting in a red ceramic bowl, the same bowl Samus had used to wash off its egg fluid. It fit snuggly inside the pottery, it's domed body transparent like a lime-green jell-o with the quivering nuclei inside being pieces of fruit. The infant was comfortably exhausted after an evening of feasting upon gifts of energy. The Chozo had stuffed it until it was too full to go after the local and immigrant fauna, such as the Etecoons and Dachoras, who still kept a healthy radius away from the metroid. Samus was similarly stuffed with Chozo delicacies, some of which brought back fond memories.

The bounty hunter looked upon the crowd and saw more Chozo than she had ever known congregating in one area. She noted several subspecies of bird people, for the ones that hailed from off-planet could differ greatly from their lithe, tree-dwelling cousins. Veaning, Wind Elder, Sharp, and those on this planet boasted extended appendages and long, stiff feathers to slow acceleration when falling. The other races of Chozo had subtle differences, but some varied so much that they appeared to be a completely separate species. For example, the former Zebesian Chozo were a relatively squat variety, with stubby, form-hugging feathers and a hooked, downwards pointing beak. The Tallon Chozo had small, raven-like heads and a rather prominent torso compared to their skeletal limbs. Of course, none of the Tallon or Zebes Chozo were among the audience, but Samus could pick out others who were obviously visitors to the planet. She spotted six individuals who were twice the size of everyone around them, and she found another two whose feathers glowed with a poisonous yellow coloring.

"Gellis tarding Warrior elesher. Elesh'ado kiam." Aldornis sighed deeply, his posture going limp for a moment before it straightened again. His eyes closed and he took a deep breath.

"Let us sing a prayer for Warrior. A prayer, and then a prophesy." Veaning whispered hurridly before taking a breath herself. The entire crowd heaved with that breath, simultaneously paused, before easing into prayer. It was the soft sound of a thousand voices in one harmony, gentle at first and growing steadily louder, more intense. Samus didn't sing; she didn't know the words, but felt prayer rise to her lips all the same. The emotion, the joy, and the hope expressed in those thousand voices filled her with wonderment. Her metroid felt it as well and floated curiously about her head. Every eye followed the child as it hovered erratically, squeaking off-key. But to Samus's surprise, the metroid eventually drifted back and forth in time with the rhythm, and it's cries began to match the song's melody. In a strange way, it was singing.

As the voices died down, the metroid made a B-line for Samus's neck. She plucked it off tolerantly and placed it back into the red bowl, where it meekly stayed.

Aldornis had his eyes closed again and there were two attendants holding his arms in case he collapsed. He might be the most powerful seer in this half of the galaxy, but that doesn't mean the act of futuresight was any less exhausting for him. Everyone around the elder stiffened, all of them feeling the ghosts which came at Aldronis's summoning. Samus gazed around uncomfortably, weight shifting from foot to foot. It made her edgy to know that the air was dense with entities which she couldn't see or feel but had a very real effect on the world. When the elder finally opened his eyes, they had an eerie, glazed look, as if those eyes didn't belong to him. He started speaking.

"En stu ar em ka..."

Samus inhaled sharply. Not only was the language Aldonis speaking different than the main Chozo dialect, but his voice was completely warped. Veaning didn't bother translating while he was talking. Her eyes were narrowed in concentration, trying to decipher the elder's cryptic words in an ancient language. When Aldornis finished, he slumped forward and the attendants grabbed him before he could fall. He woke abruptly, his hackles raised in alarm, and sighed when he realized where he was.

The crowd began to talk quietly among themselves and slowly melted away, off to enjoy the rest of the evening. "So what did he say?" Samus asked Veaning. Instead of responding, Veaning gestured with her beak at the approaching Aldornis, who was now flanked by Sharp and Wind Elder.

"A vision is never as accurate as one could wish." Aldornis began. "And with you being such a pivotal figure in the history of the universe, your future is even more convoluted." The elder's normally stiff neck sagged a little, either with exhaustion or disappointment. "I could not see very far. Like any prediction, your future could shift with a sigh of wind or a change in tide."

"I trust your premonitions. Tell me what you can." Samus said, mostly to reassure the old Chozo. She wasn't overly eager to hear what he had to say, for half the predictions Old Bird made for her never came to fruition. And, she hated the thought of any concrete future; her life was not a closed path devoid of crossroads. She'd rather think of it as a myriad of possibilities, as expansive and multi-faceted as the universe itself. To dwell upon the fear or anticipation of a predicted future distracts her from the here and now.

Aldornis paused for a moment, trying to remember words he had spoken while barely lucid, and trying to phrase them accurately from an ancient tongue to Universal. "The stars call to you, return to them with the promise of a new Warrior, Mother Metroid." Samus grimaced a bit at her new name. She didn't think she would ever be psychologically ready to consider herself a mother. And it was interesting how, when the metroid hatched, all the Chozo simultaneously stopped calling her Warrior. "A friend not of flesh awaits you. Listen, but do not trust." The huntress's frown deepened marginally. She didn't know many people she would consider 'friends' in the first place. But while she was mentally going through her meager list for someone who might fit the description, Aldornis made his final prediction. "And do not let your hatred overwhelm you, Hatchling."

"No good news, huh." Samus let her face melt into an impassive mask. She didn't like to be reminded about hatred. The Chozo were always making such a big fuss over it. It was her sustenence, an element coursing through her veins as nourishing to her as her blood. She would like to tell them that she had full control of her emotions, that anger and enmity were her allies in battle, but it would only make them sad.

"There is more to life than revenge." Wind Elder said gently. "Try to focus on something else." His hands were cupped like the day he handed the metroid egg to Samus, but now he held the egg's former occupant. He tossed it lightly up into the air, where it woke up and flew in the bounty hunter's direction, landing first on her cheek and then inched down towards her neck.

"Mmmm." Samus smiled fondly as her child chirped and wriggled, tickling her throat. "How are you enjoying things tonight, Warrior?" She could focus on her metroid; it was distracting enough by its own right. "Hey... wha, aaah!" The baby tried to squeeze itself into the narrow space between her suit collar and neck, succeeding only in getting itself hopelessly stuck, half in, half out.

Veaning helped her remove the suit so the metroid could get out. The little parasite shrieked indignantly, scolding the Chozo as if it was her fault it was stuck. Then it forgot what it was doing and blithely floated back towards its mother.

"The night is still young, Defender." Sharp gestured with a hand at the field before her, cluttered with booths bearing food and artworks and machines on display. "Enjoy the rest of the celebration. It is your night. Yours, and your child's." Samus nodded curtly at the elder and hopped off the platform with her infant in tow.

The location which the Chozo had chosen for the hatching ceremony was interesting, to say the least, made of architecture which Samus had never seen before. First of all, the location consisted of a wide open field, rare on this forested planet, with ample space for the booths set up like a fairgrounds. There the Chozo made a show of whatever it was they were willing to display, be it delicate tapestry, an intricate dance, a jeweled Arrist grown from seed, or the latest technological achievement, all were held in equal regard. Surrounding the field were several immense trees, although not nearly as big as Sheltering Trees. They were devoid of leaves and the branches were all of the same thickness and length. What was unique about the trees was that every inch of their surface was decorated with Chozo carvings. The reliefs ranged from abstract, to symbolic, to representational, to narrative. Images chased each other around the cylinder of trunk, sprouting feathers of branches and bleeding sap from insect inflicted injuries. Some were sculpted with the most delicate of lasers, while others were probably pecked into existence by an individual with a sharp beak and a thick skull. Apparently, carving into the tree didn't damage it. Samus put a hand on one of the totems and felt the subtle power inside. It was different from the power of statues, which drew their energies from prayers laid over every stone and tool. The power she felt was the life force of the tree itself.

The night wore on and the flock of Chozo dissipated until only a few stragglers were left. Occasionally, an individual would walk near Samus, gaze at her curiously, and seeing that she was in no mood to talk, continue on his or her way. The bounty hunter stood in the center of the field, staring at nothing in particular, stroking the sleepy metroid in her arms as one would pet a kitten. The whole ceremony in her and her child's honor had brought about a sense of peace and belonging with her odd, bird-like half-family. But as soon as she achieved this feeling, she knew it would not last forever. She was under no illusions; she knew that the ceremony doubled as a farewell ceremony for her. Many Chozo had given her presents this day, such as extra rations, new clothes, a living battery cell, and other items useful for the long space voyages she frequents. When they spoke to her, they wished her luck and wished her health. There was nothing more for her to accomplish here, not when the mission to deliver the metroid hatchling was uncompleted.

The next morning, Samus stood at the docking bay in front of her sleeker, newly painted, souped-up ship, courtesy of the Chozo. It seemed as if the entire planet had come out to watch her go, for feathered individuals stood on every surface and perched on every tree, leaving only enough room for the hunter class gunship to lift off. The three elders and Veaning came up one by one to ritualistically brush their beaks against Samus's face, the pointed tips resting for a moment on her nose as a gesture of farewell.

"Sister..." Veaning said as her gem-like orbs of eyes stared into pale blue human ones. "Do not forget. When you face hardships, remember that you are no longer alone."

The huntress smiled, nodding once with her eyes closed. When she opened them, she saw that the metroid had shoved Veaning slightly to the side, fighting to be in its mother's line of vision. It squeed for attention.

"You bully." The mother said tolerantly. "Of course I haven't forgotten you."

Veaning pecked the metroid's rubbery flesh, both wishing it goodbye and nudging it gently away. The little parasite didn't know how to react to the gesture and wandered off, peeping in mild confusion. It followed Samus as she ascended to the open hatch of her ship and squeezed itself against her when a chorus of Chozo voices sang their final farewell. Human and metroid watched from the cockpit window as the gathering shrank from view, watching until the planet that had once sheltered them became lost in the perpetual darkness of space.


	25. Chapter 25

Samus turned off the lights. She adjusted her ship's controls so that none of the computer terminals were glowing and even the emergency lights were devoid of illumination. It was as dark as death. She couldn't even see her own hands, although they made silhouettes as she held them up against the stars. She turned off the ship's engines. It was travelling fast enough on frictionless momentum. The silence was all-consuming.

The huntress pressed her face up against the ship's main window. Without sound, without light, she might as well be drifting, lost and alone in the freezing vacuume of space. Just the thought was terrifying, but the bounty hunter took a rare thrill in that flavor of terror. This was as close as she could get to such an experience; any closer and she'd wind up dead within minutes. She closed her eyes and sighed against the glass. She'd missed this in all the months she spent on the Chozo planet. The isolation of space, the indifference of the void suited her.

"Squee." The metroid scratched the window with a fang and squished against it, trying to see what its mother was seeing. Its own illumination was dim and subdued, keeping with the theme of darkness. It was only the source of light and sound on the ship.

Samus absently stroked the larvae's rubbery flesh. "Look there, Warrior." She pointed to a red smear of a star. "That's Ostelic Major, one of the only suns that's cool enough to support life. And over there, beside the small nebula: that's Mirage 14. You can hardly see the Mirage planets since they revolve around a tiny blue star that doesn't produce much light. Between those two, although it's hardly visible now, is Siran Rhese, the sun of the SR planets. There are hundreds of SR planets. One of them is your home."

Warrior probably didn't understand, but it kept still as if it was listening. It was growing big, much bigger than Hatchling was at around the same age. Samus supposed this was because she fed Warrior live food rather than energy from her ship and suit. She kept several of those vertebrae caterpillars in her hydroponics tank as a replenishable food source, for both her metroid and herself. She could retrieve some fresh protein from the animals once Warrior was finished with them. Their meat was delicious, fat, and boneless save for its single spine. She still felt the urge to suck their energy, but the urges were suppressable now. Her child needed the nourishment more than she did.

Warrior could already wrap its mandibles around a human head, but its prefered perch was to cling, leech-like, against its mother's belly. It had long outgrown its favorite spot on the huntress's neck. For some reason, it liked to hang vertically rather than resting horizontally. It loved the feel of warm human skin, all soft and yielding although it was not transparent like its own body. When it touched Samus, it was sensitive to her every movement, from her heartbeat to her breathing to the humming vibrations she made when she spoke.

It nudged against her stomach now, hopeful. It had learned that Samus did not always allow such behavior, but she was more likely to give in if it was polite in asking. She looked down at it with a sleepy look of annoyance, then sighed in defeat. She dropped her arms to her sides and Warrior quickly occupied the vacated space, chirping.

Samus didn't mind the parasite being attached to her; the extra weight was barely noticeable with her Chozo strength. It helped illuminate the area before her as she groped in the dark for the light switch. And as she worked on the computer interface, her elbows rested comfortably on the protruding dome of the metroid.

After some time, Warrior began mewling in its singsong voice, although it had the decency to sound almost apologetic for the interruption. The bounty hunter paused for a moment, then decided to listen to her child's suggestion to take a break. She pried the metroid off her and it hovered around her head, as eager as a child anticipating candy.

"Warrior." Samus said in a commanding voice as she sat in front of the hydroponics tank. The metroid floated steadily before her. "Down. And stay." It plopped obediently onto the floor with its fangs splayed out. "Good. Now stay. Stay." Samus put a hand on it to make sure it wouldn't move. With the remaining hand, she removed a caterpillar and put it on top of her child, then slowly backed away.

"Squeeeeww." Warrior whimpered pitifully, its mandibles twitching in complaint.

"Seru." The woman ordered. Her child fell silent. "I told you to stay." She rose to her feet and left the room for a moment, returning with a ration bar and a heat plate. She was pleased to find that the metroid had not budged from its position, only a shaky glow giving away its impatience. The caterpillar moved lethargically on protoplasmic flesh, trying to find a good foothold with its suction feet.

Samus made herself comfortable on the floor and finally whistled a short tune, after which Warrior immediately flipped onto its back and caught the startled worm in its fangs. She took a bite out of her ration bar and watched her child feed, her expression wistful. Its method of eating didn't disgust her, but induced quite a contrary feeling, considering how she once fed like that as well. For now, she was merely pleased that her training of Warrior in a language consisting of Universal, Chozo, and music was working to some extent. When the meal was finished, Samus whistled another tune and the metroid dropped the leftovers onto her lap.

"That's a good baby." She cooed, gently rubbing the base of a metroid fang. It made the happiest purring sounds and draped itself over a human lap. Warrior never needed much incentive to learn, remember and obey Samus's commands. It seemed perfectly content with being the willing and eager pupil/servant, as long as it had the acceptance of its mother. Perhaps its behavior had to do with the metroids's hive-like society, in which all junior members followed the Queen's bidding faithfully. Samus could already command Warrior with a 50 word/song vocabulary, but there were limits to what the baby metroid could learn. It could not comprehend sentences and most of the words it knew had some physical action attached to it. The most abstract words in its working lexicon were 'good' and 'bad', both of which were used with enough frequency that they were understood and remembered. Perhaps it would learn more once it evolved.

Samus turned her attention to the caterpillar which she placed on the heat plate. The plate's temperature was set on low so she could turn the animal with her fingers without too much injury, yet high enough so that the fluids would congeal tenderly inside the exoskeleton.

Warrior was bumping itself against the hydroponics tank in an attempt to find a weakness in the glass and slip through. It was unsuccessful at this attempt, as it was in every previous one, and decided to engross itself in whatever its mother was doing. It watched her flip the frying insect, then tried doing so itself.

"Hey!..." Samus cried, then stopped. She saw that the heat plate didn't cause Warrior any discomfort, and in fact it was squeaking in a questioning tone, wondering if it had done something wrong. The bounty hunter suddenly wondered if the metroid had a higher heat tolerance to compensate for its vulnerablility to cold. It made sense, especially when she distastefully recalled SR388's abundance of acid lava. As an experiment, she turned up the temperature and flipped the caterpillar again, indicating that Warrior should do the same. It did, eagerly, interested in this new game. She further increased the temperature a bit, then a bit more, but she never did discover Warrior's threshold for heat, not when the metroid's childish nature made it overly enthusiastic. It flipped the sizzling caterpillar, then flipped it again without waiting for its mother, then it decided that she shouldn't have possession of its new toy at all and dashed off with it. When Samus demanded that the food be returned, the child tossed it in her general direction, resulting in situation similar to a chucked water balloon filled with searing-hot entrails.

Samus opted to take a shower as soon as the fusion suit finished healing the heat damage to her skin. Warrior trailed after her, chirping mournfully, finally realizing that it did indeed do something wrong. It hovered at ankle height, slow and forlorn like a dog with his tail between his legs, moving quickly only to dodge articles of clothing falling to the floor.

"You've caused enough trouble today. Bad." Samus dismissed Warrior with those words and shut the shower door on it. The metroid infant whined as the glass misted up, slowly deleting the image of its mother.

A sudden klaxon diverted Warrior's attention and it immediately rushed to the cockpit to see what was going on. It didn't do anything once there, of course; the only buttons its mother lets it press were the light switches and the Autopilot trigger. There was the sound of wet feet slapping as the aforementioned mother ran to the helm, disregarding shower, towel, and clothes in her haste. She stared at the computer for a second before realizing what the cause of the disturbance was.

"Warrior. Down. Freeze." Samus sat on the pilot's seat and pushed the metroid to the ground. At the 'freeze' command, Warrior preformed what she thought was its neatest trick, which was to completely immobilize itself. Its fangs would stiffen, its glow would turn off and it would hang itself motionless in midair. It couldn't keep the act up for long, however. Samus hoped this would be a short communication, but kept a foot on the metroid just in case. She took a moment to flip wet hair over her shoulders before answering the transmission.

The holographic face of an officer appeared before Samus. "Attention, unidentified hunter-class gunship," The huntress managed to scowl at the image; it was just her luck that it had to be a human male on the other end. "This is communications officer Seth Gallis of research station Rebenada. You are entering restricted Galactic Federation territory." The man hesitated briefly. Although he couldn't see below Samus's shoulders, it wasn't every day that a wet, naked woman answered a routine transmission. But he recovered quickly, either too professional to let something like this faze him, or unnerved by the bounty hunter's glare of bladed ice. In any case, he tried to avoid her eyes. "Identify yourself and your business immediately."

"I am Samus Aran, freelance bounty hunter." She replied, sounding almost bored. Now the man did gape, and quite openly. A universally renowned mercenary, even one who has had a falling out with the Federation, was not meant to be seen in such an exposed state. That in turn threw him off balance, made him feel as if he was the vulnerable one. "Are you quite done staring?" She said, annoyance coloring her voice. "I'm a busy woman. Make this quick."

It wasn't long ago that the universe believed Samus Aran was a cyborg. She did nothing to dissuade the notion back then, but now, if the visuals didn't confirm her womanhood, then her own confession did. Gallis swallowed and tried to regain his composure. "You are not authorized to be here, Ms. Aran. I repeat, please state your business."

"I am on a mission which requires me to enter this system."

"I have not received any word of..."

"Of course you haven't. Let me talk to your superior."

Gallis bristled at the interruption and abrupt dismissal. Regardless of her past notoriety, Aran was still a civilian and had no right to talk to him like that. He was about to bark back a retort when he noticed the blinking radar screen beside him. It clearly displayed Samus's ship, but it was moving at a speed impossible for even fighters and breakercrafts, let alone gunships.

"You should hurry." Aran said casually, as if reading the officer's thoughts. "I will be within spitting distance of the Rebenada in less than five minutes."

It wasn't long before another face replaced the hologram of the officer, a face which was drawn and chiseled to read 'astute' and 'commanding', with a hint of aloofness and irritation. The irritation grew as Samus ignored the man at first. She was faced the floor and whistled a strange tune before turning to the new speaker.

"I am the Commander and Manager of Rebenada research station, Kaleb Ark Ferdinaz. Samus Aran, you realize that this is restricted territory and yet you still insist on entering. Explain yourself."

Ignoring his perpetual frown, Samus had to at least admire the man for getting quickly to the point. He didn't seem very affected by her nudity. "I used to travel freely in this area and until given incentive to do otherwise, I still intend to do so." She thought she vaguely recognized Ferdinaz. He was some big-name military hotshot, back when she was but a fledgling hunter.

"Would arrest and confiscation of your ship be enough incentive for you?" Ferdinaz said with a smile. His expression dissolved as quickly as it appeared. "You're not stupid, Ms. Aran. So why are you acting like you are? I know you haven't forgotten the significance of the Siran Rhese system."

"And what if I did forget?"

"Then I would be a gentleman and remind you before escorting you away. But like I said, you haven't forgotten. So stop your vehicle immediately before I am forced to open fire on you." Ferdinaz glanced at the radar screen and noted with satisfaction the gunship's abrupt halt. He turned back to Samus's hologram. "Now cut the crap. What are you doing here?"

"To my knowledge, Rebenada is a sister station to B.S.L." Samus said blandly. "And since it shares the same orbit as its predecessor, I would assume that it also boasts similar functions."

Ferdinaz's lips drew themselves thinner. She left unsaid that B.S.L. was an undeclared metroid breeding facility, and then a deathtrap full of X, all of which she sent crashing into their homeworld. She had something against the study of the X, despite all the potentials of such research.

"Yes," The man said gruffly. "Research station Rebenada, like B.S.L., is devoted to the study of the indigenous lifeforms and the enviroment of SR388 for the benefit of civilization."

Samus smiled, sweetly and coldly. He left unsaid that the study of indigenous lifeforms included the metroids and the X, both of which would incite riots on every major planet if the civilian population ever knew about them. And the 'benefit of civilization' basically meant that they were working on the development of better weapons.

"Of course it is, Commander." She agreed with genuine-sounding honesty. Then the bounty hunter paused, seeming to hesitate. "You see, I am in need of the facilities on the Rebenada. You must know that my power suit was drastically altered during my last venture to B.S.L. And, considering your rank and the amount of information that passes by you, you might also know that I have been experiencing problems with the new fusion suit and have even visited a Federation doctor about it."

Aran switched the visuals from holographic 3D to 2D, allowing the man to see everything behind her. Ferdinaz's eyebrows shot up with interest when he saw the fusion suit in the background. At a glance, it looked quite a bit like her original power suit without the varia or gravity upgrades. But instead of a singular plate covering each shoulder, three curved plates overlapped each other at an increasingly upwards slant. The mandibles found on her previous fusion suit seemed crueler now, more mobile and sensitive. She retained the blades on her left arm, and the blades on her knees, once mostly decorative, were now probably functional as actual weapons. Yet, the interlocking plates or scales of her new suit resembled neither the organic nor mechanical appearance of her previous suits. Instead, it was something in between, perhaps comparable to a mechanical insect of sorts.

"There has been some recent complications with my armor." The bounty hunter said dryly, indicating to her suit's new developments. "And I was unsatisfied with my last visit to the Federation doctor. I figured that since Rebenada had close ties with B.S.L., I might be able to get more answers about the condition of my power suit if I inquired some of your researchers. I am willing to part with it for some time if doing so would yield the results I am looking for." She glanced hopefully at the Commander. "So how about it? I'm sure we can come to some sort or agreement."

Ferdinaz considered the pros and cons of allowing Samus Aran onto the Rebenada. She was not permitted near the station nor the planet it revolved around, but that was mostly because of the fear that she would destroy one or both. The likelyhood of her doing something drastic would increase if she discovered that Rebenada housed a fair number of X for study. Yet, without her suit, what threat did she pose? She would be as dangerous as any other human female. But if she sincerely needed help with her suit and had no intention of blowing anything up, then she might not be a threat at all. And if the researchers were to discover something new about her suit, or the Chozo, or the metroid vaccine, then it would be to his advantage. He simply needed to ensure that she stayed away from the X experiments. She had enough blackmail material against the Federation already.

"Alright, Ms. Aran." Ferdinaz answered reluctantly. "But I'm afraid our docking bay is somewhat overburdened right now, so you will have to leave your gunship in orbit. We will send a shuttle for you and your power suit. We'll be there in twenty minutes."

The bounty hunter's left eye twitched, but then she nodded. "Alright. I'll be waiting."

The moment the transmission was terminated, Samus slammed a fist onto the armrest. "Shit!" She hissed vehemently. Everything had been going according to plan until the moment Ferdinaz said he would send a shuttle. How was she supposed to smuggle Warrior onboard a shuttle?

She rose from her seat and paced while thinking, her child a close shadow behind her head. She had no doubts about the true purpose of Rebenada. Like B.S.L.; it was a military development facility, not only of metroids and X, but of other questionable things as well. Actually, it probably didn't contain metroids since the Chozo had been pretty specific that Warrior was the last of its kind. But the X were a definite possibility.

Samus could battle the X without her suit, but she would be at a huge disadvantage when it comes to fighting opponents with long-range weapons. She had planned to rely on Warrior for defense, especially if the Federation personnel onboard turned against her. Now she had walked into the jaws of her own trap.

At least she was allowed onto the station. The bait of relinquishing her suit for science was too much for the researchers to resist.

The huntress stopped before the cockpit window, staring out at the Rebenada. Unlike B.S.L., it was thin, long, and flat, like an oversized, mechanical piece of spaghetti. No, it's more like linguini. She allowed herself a crooked grin. She would like some pasta right now. The surface of SR388 could be a giant meatball dwarfing the research station in orbit.

Samus stared at the wet footprints on the ground. Oh yeah, her shower. She had left the water running; her reservoir of hot water was probably depleted by now. She stared again at the space station. Warrior nudged against her belly and attached itself there when it met no resistance. Samus stared down at her baby.

And then, she was hit with a moment of sudden inspiration.

She laughed, loudly and brashly. She tossed her head back and filled her ship with the sound. Warrior squealed its own version of laughter, feeling both its mother's glee and the vibrations running down her body. "Oh my God." She said, wiping the corners of her eyes. Oh, she's figured out a way to smuggle Warrior aboard, all right. It was probably the most absurd, inane, spur-of-the-moment plan she's ever conceived of. But it just might work. She just had to make sure she didn't die of laughter or embarrassment first.

Warrior chirped a question at its mother. Samus curled down and gave it an awkward hug. "Can you sense it, Warrior? The excitement, the rush of adrenalin before a mission. I feel it all the time." She smiled into the metroid's rubbery flesh. "We're going in, baby. I'm counting on you."


	26. Chapter 26

Kaleb Ark Ferdinaz was a man in his early sixties who was rather satisfied with his position in life. Yes, being the Commander and Manager of a morally questionable research station was something of a decline compared to being a General in the Galactic Federation army, but it suited his age and his ambitions, neither of which were very vigourous anymore. In his long and colorful life, he had seen and heard enough about the bounty hunter Samus Aran to both respect her and fear her. For the sake of his pride, he had planned to reveal neither when he finally came face-to-face with the legendary figure. It would not do to show any weakness in front of her. When the doors to his private office opened, Ferdinaz carefully composed his features and banished his nervousness.

But Aran was nothing like he expected her to be.

The woman's golden hair was no longer damp as he had last seen it, but dried and combed to tumble loosely over her shoulders with a few loose strands falling elegantly over one eye. She never wore makeup, never needed it, for she radiated youth and beauty when she wasn't busy radiating anger, indifference, or violence. Ferdinaz had been looking forward to seeing her in the skintight and revealing clothing which she tended to wear when outside her suit, but she had chosen a billowy black dress for the occasion. The material of the dress was tightly woven so that nothing could be seen underneath, and so dark that shadows had trouble forming over the contours of the surface.

None of that would have normally fazed Ferdinaz. With eyes as large a physical credits, he watched Samus enter the room. He noticed how she walked with an exaggerated slowness, as if she's carrying something heavy or was unused to the gravity level. She used the armrests to ease herself onto the chair across his desk and shuffled in it, unable to get comfortable. What really bewildered the Commander was the rather large and obvious bulge protruding from Aran's stomach. When did THAT get there? The swollen midsection was wrong and awkward; it had no place on the perfect body of the ruthless bounty hunter. But she seemed perfectly comfortable with her new girth. Her hands rested on her belly and her fingers moved absently to stroke the young life underneath. Ferdinaz shook off his disorientation with some difficulty and rose to greet her.

"Welcome, Samus Aran." Ferdinaz offered her a hand which she grasped firmly and shook. Despite his earlier resolve, the Commander was now tempted to treat her less like a bounty hunter and more like a woman when she came to him in such a state. She reminded him of when his grandson was born. He smiled at the memory. "I suppose I should first offer you my congratulations."

He didn't think she was capable of embarrassment, but her eyes shifted away and she put a hand to her lips as if hiding a grin. "Thank you." Was all she said.

After an awkward pause in which she didn't volunteer any information, Ferdinaz prompted, "So, can you tell me what exactly happened to your suit?" The faint grin lingered on Aran's face, as if she found something incredibly amusing. But there was a certain malice in her eyes that Ferdinaz recognized from her holographic projection, and he suddenly, belatedly, remembered that he was in the presence of the most powerful and successful mercenary in the civilized universe. She wouldn't hesitate to kill him if she deemed it necessary, or if the price was right.

"I've been having problems with my energy levels ever since I acquired the fusion suit." Samus admitted, her tone neutral. "That is, my own physical human energy, not the energy tanks of my suit or anything. After the B.S.L. incident, I was chronically tired in a way that seemed unnatural. This was what I went to see the Federation doctor about, approximately eleven months ago. After an examination, they said that nutrition deficiencies were the cause of my lethargic state, but what the hell did they know?" The bounty hunter leaned back into her chair. "It was the metroid vaccine. The side effects were much more numerous and invasive than anyone expected. Lethargy was only one of the factors. For a while, I was actually afraid to wear my suit. And then, when I dared put it on again, it...changed..." Her face darkened at the memory. "...Or evolved, if you fancy the term, evolved like a metroid evolves. I haven't had many opportunities to test my new suit's features afterwards, nor was I willing to. Besides, in my current situation, I couldn't wear the suit if I tried." She patted her belly, indicating that her pregnancy was the reason that she couldn't wear her suit.

"I see." Ferdinaz said, stroking his short beard. She had given him a rather sketchy overview of her last year. He was tempted to pry for more details, but he had the feeling that she would grow irritated if she had to repeat the same details to the researchers later. He turned the conversation to more administrative topics. "Approximately how long are you willing to let us experiment with your power suit?"

"I don't know. As long as it takes to find something or as long as you're willing to put up with me. Whichever comes first." Aran suddenly put both arms around her stomach. Her eyes closed and she hummed a short tune.

Ferdinaz frowned in concern. It looked to him as if she was in pain and trying to distract herself from it. "How late are you in the pregnancy, Ms. Aran? Are you expecting the baby soon?"

"Oh, um, it's nothing like that." Samus said nonchalantly. A bead of sweat formed on her temple. "It's always given me trouble."

"Always?" The man's concern grew. "You know that deep space is not a good place to be when carrying a child." It was common knowledge that pregnant women who spend too much time in space often give birth to children with defects. The mother could be injured or crippled as well. Samus was especially at risk, since she also had Chozo and metroid blood in her veins. What kind of sad, mutated baby would she produce? And where was the father of the child? Ferdinaz suddenly felt a wave of pity for the bounty hunter and her lonely, suffering existence.

"I'll be fine. As soon as my business on Rebenada is finished, I'll be going planetside." Samus heaved herself onto her feet. Her features were lined with worry? Pain? The man couldn't tell. It seemed as if that face was made of a material tougher than skin, like it was difficult for her to show any but the most subtle of expressions. "Perhaps I should return to my ship now, Commander."

"No." Ferdinaz said and stood up, perhaps too abruptly. Samus turned and locked eyes with him. Her gaze was fierce and incredulous, as if she couldn't believe that he would dare contradict her. She looked like she might eat him. The man felt his lips go dry. "No," He repeated slowly, carefully. "It's too much trouble. We will prepare you a room on the Rebenada, if you like. There are several empty chambers and there are more resources here than on your ship. I'm sure you'll find it more comfortable here."

He walked around his desk and offered her a hand. Aran stared at it as if it was a snake, then up at him, those pale, blue eyes of hers narrowed in suspicion. Poor girl; she's seen so little kindness in her life that she didn't trust it when freely given. But Ferdinaz knew she accepted his offer when she forced the muscles of her face to pull her mouth into a thin smile. She took his hand.

"Thank you." She said, still smiling that forced, quirky smile which didn't quite reach her eyes.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It's amazing how the years could flash by in an instant, like a vid on skip, pausing only to linger on certain memories as my eyes settled on certain shapes in the land. I would have liked to take off my helmet, let the wind blow through my hair and breathe deeply, seeing if any old memories could be conjured up by familiar scents. But the air was barely breathable, and it was raining acid. This was no time to reminisce.

When was the last time I came here? A year ago, two? I shot open the hatch beneath my feet. Everything was eerily similar, different, and older all at once. I was definitely going back in time as I retraced the steps I took during my mad scramble up to the surface, rushing to escape the planet. Oh, I escaped all right, but I was eventually shot back down. And here I was again.

Why had Ridley returned here? For irony? Nostalgia? I had long destroyed the Space Pirate's base on Zebes. The ruined, shattered remains of Mother Brain's former chamber were a testament to that. I walked past the broken jar that once held the Pirate leader, my boots squelching on what I fancied to be her decomposed innards but was probably just wet moss.

Small, shelled animals scurried into the darkness as soon as the light of my suit exposed them. It was good to know that they were there; good to know that I'm not the only living thing on this planet. Not that I was bothered by the emptiness, but Hatchling might be. It broke my heart to imagine my little metroid crying into the darkness, waiting for an answer and receiving none. I had to find it as soon as possible.

Down an elevator I went. Now, if I remembered correctly... Ah, there it was. The Morph Ball upgrade. The Chozo ghosts or statues usually rematerialize items a while after they have been taken. This made things easier for me. But as soon as I integrated the upgrade into my suit, a light appeared from nowhere, blinding me in the darkness.

"Ah!" I shot a beam at the light's source, but I didn't do any damage. My eyes adjusted and I saw that it was some sort of searchlight, or maybe even a surveillance camera. It was Pirate in origin, and I found it surprising how it was still functional. It was nothing of consequence. I continued exploring.

Some tunnels had collapsed since my last visit on this planet and some new ones had opened up. But my search for a passage onwards resulted in nothing but dead ends, although I did find a few missile tanks. Perhaps there were more passages upon the surface of Zebes that I could reach with my reaquired morph ball and missiles.

It was when I stumbled across another searchlight that a spike of suspicion and dread made itself known within me. Pirate technology was not good enough to survive the explosion that I triggered after destroying Mother Brain. The first searchlight I thought to be a fluke, but now, with the second, I thought it might not be as serendipitous as simple coincidence.

Back up the elevator I went. The room at the apex of the ascent was now brightly lit, unlike the smothering darkness it was before. "Oh shit." I sneered to no one in particular. Perhaps I didn't do a thorough enough job of Pirate elimination as I had thought.

I opened the hatch to Mother Brain's former chamber with my gun arm ready. A Space Pirate was waiting for me on the other side, all claw and teeth and laser. Its eyes burned for a taste of my blood and it screeched a cry that I had heard often enough in my childhood nightmares.

"Why hello," I whispered in my lowest, most sinister voice. Oh yes, this party couldn't start without me.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

As soon as Ferdinaz left her alone, Samus took the time to walk the perimeter of her new room, slowly, with one hand against the wall. As a part of her metroid traits, she discovered that if she concentrated hard enough, she would be able to faintly sense all sorts of energy, including things that powered hidden cameras. Once she was satisfied that no spies or voyeurs were looking in on her, the bounty hunter flopped onto the bed, curled into a ball and giggled like a schoolgirl.

"Oh my GOD! I can't believe it worked!" Samus gasped, wiping away tears. She rolled onto her back and pushed down on her protruding 'belly'. "Warrior, yekzu."

"Bwrrrr!" The metroid exclaimed as it flew out of its mother's dress, shaking and stretching its stiff mandibles.

The mother laughed. "Come here, my 'baby'." Always eager for physical contact, Warrior flew into her arms, trying embrace her fully with its stubby fangs. "You were good today. Very good." The infant squeaked at the word 'good', which it recognized. "You think you can keep this up for a while?" It couldn't understand, of course, but its body language seemed to say, "I'm eager to please, mother, eager to please."

Samus's hysterical grin was difficult to erase, considering how she had been surpressing it for so long. Oh, the clever ploy of pretending to be pregnant worked much better than she had anticipated. She thought Ferdinaz might have been competent enough to see through the farce, but hers was such an unorthodox strategy that he was completely thrown off. He was a kind man, and the same aptitude made him gullible. It was so sweet of him to be so concerned over the lost, unloved girl and her unborn child. She laughed again. Sickening sweet. She almost felt guilty for using the old man's presumptions against him.

The best part about the whole scam was that she didn't actually lie about anything. She merely omitted a number of truths and spoke in ways that would draw false conclusions. It certainly wasn't her fault if her implications were assumed to be facts. It's true that she's 'with child', and the child was related to her because they shared the same blood. And it was true that her suit had undergone a sudden metamorphosis when she wore it after a period of inactivity. But she didn't say that her child was an already-hatched metroid or that the suit's change had been engineered by the Chozo.

Was Ferdinaz suspicious? Probably. He wasn't a complete fool, only something of a sentimental one. But his insistence for her to stay aboard the research station bothered her. Was he truly that generous? Or was he afraid that Samus might take off if left alone on her ship, breezing past the Rebenada before it could to react? It's not as if she would abandon her power suit. Or did he think that it would be easier to keep an eye on her within his own territory?

At the very least, Samus's true intention was to get past the Rebenada in order to deliver Warrior safely to SR388. She would also like to disable the station or send it away, for any Federation activity close to the planet was a threat to her and her child. The Federation would love to continue metroid experimentation after being robbed of the opportunity by a certain bounty hunter gone rogue. That bounty hunter was also determined to destroy any X experiments onboard the Rebenada. But it would require a bit more espionage and deception on her part.

In any case, she couldn't keep up the 'pregnant' act indefinately. People would start to get suspicious if she didn't give birth in the next month or so, as she appeared to be late in the third trimester. Warrior had almost blown their cover once, but Samus settled it down by holding it and singing a command. Thankfully, Ferdinaz probably thought that she was merely experiencing a contraction or something similar.

The huntress buried her head in a pillow. This was embarrassing beyond description. Hell, two hours ago, she didn't know she was even capable of experiencing emotions like that. What would people think if they heard that she, Samus Aran, the infamous bounty hunter, was biologically capable of being a mother? Not that she cared about rumors, she firmly reminded herself. Really.

Samus stood up and schooled her features into something more neutral, more acceptable to herself. She paced around the room, shedding the slow, waddling walk she had adopted as a part of her performance. The room was a homey one, with smooth vernolium floors and comfortable furniture, like a hotel suite. She had expected something more spartan for a hastily prepared guestroom on a research laboratory that didn't often receive guests. There were clothes left for her on a chair, no doubt as a courtesy. Most of them were useless for concealing Warrior, but there was a long scientist's robe which might be suitable. She picked it up and sniffed it deeply. Then she tried the scent of another article of clothing. They smelled clean, but, like the pillow, they shared the scent of someone. Someone who was no longer here and had left his or her personal effects behind.

Further investigation of her new chamber revealed the door to the washroom. Samus stepped inside, blinked, shook her head, and blinked again. There was a bath in here! Sweet luxury in a fiberglass tub! It's been several years at least since her last bath. Yes, this more than made up for her interrupted shower earlier.

Humming with pleasure, she filled the tub with hot water and tossed off her dress. Warrior, attracted by the sound of splashing and music, wandered in and found its mother liberally smearing soap along her arms. "Just in time, Warrior. Come."

The metroid obeyed and hovered daintily above the water, its fangs just breaking the surface. All at once, it dropped into the liquid like a stone, making a big splash that drew a yelp out of the bounty hunter. She grabbed the child and proceeded to give it a scrubbing while it purred and blew bubbles, content with the smooth, rhythmic motions over its body. It soon discovered that a combination of air, water, and soap made optimal bubbles, and started creating foam from the mouth-like orifice between its four mandibles.

Samus sighed, drawing soap circles on protoplasmic flesh. Hatchling had always despised being washed. Just how different were her two metroid children? Despite having the same DNA makeup, they had very different personalities. She wondered if, in an alternate reality, she could have both Hatchling and Warrior at the same time. She imagined how they would interact with one another, how they would squabble over a choice piece of energy, and how they would conspire to confound their harried mother. The daydream made her smile, although it looked more like a grimace.

With the bath finished, Samus dried her hair and parted it down the middle of her head, braiding one half and letting Warrior attempt to braid the other. It knew how to do it, but its mandibles were simply not dexterious enough to do it neatly. When it was smaller, Samus could give Warrior a third of her hair, hold the other two with her hands, and let the metroid weave around her arms while the hair she held rhythmically switched hands. The result would be one tightly knit, effective braid.

But now the child was too big to do anything of the sort. It was hopeless. Warrior shrieked and gave the hair a frustrated yank, then started circling its mother's head.

"Ow!" Samus used one hand to nurse her sore head and the other to swat uselessly at the parasite in its erratic orbit. "You need better manners."

Warrior saw that it wasn't going to get any attention from its mother when she was busy ignoring it. The metroid eventually found a playmate in a discarded sock, which it started wrestling with, eventually disappearing under the bed in its exuberance. Samus sighed in exasperation when her child reemerged all dusty; she'd only just washed the kid. It eventually formed a truce with its opponent, curling down on the floor with the sock and falling into a weary sleep. The bounty hunter thought she could sponge Warrior off while it was sleeping, but its dim glow induced a yawn in her and she realized that she could use some sleep herself. She fell heavily onto the bed, making air hiss out at her weight. It's not as if anyone would be seeing the dirty metroid any time soon. But when they finally do, Warrior's state of cleanness would certainly be the last thing on their minds.


	27. Chapter 27

The smile was the final touch.

After lifting up her cheeks with her hands and pulling them sideways in front of a mirror, Samus decided that a tight-lipped smile was the least feral of her facial expressions. Her lips were red and moist, as if it had a coat of lipstick, but was actually the product of excessive chewing and sucking. Having no mascara or foundation, the bounty hunter's creamy skin and generous lashes would have to do for her what an application of makeup did for several of the human women Samus had seen aboard the Rebenada. A pair of stolen glasses sat low on her nose allowing her to peer over it without obstruction. She turned her head to one side, then the other, regarding with satisfaction the tight knot of hair held together by a pair of chopsticks found in the mess hall. A scientist's overcoat adorned her frame, pressed and immaculate, and smelling heavily of the antiseptic soap permeating the entire station.

She pushed back on her chair and examined herself at full length. She appeared very unSamus-like, at least from a distance, which was exactly the effect she was going for. Would this disguise be enough to fool the residents of the Rebenada?

Samus swiveled around on her chair and flung her arms out. "What do you think, Warrior?" She asked of her offspring. The metroid dropped out of the ceiling corner and swooped once around its mother, squeaking passively before returning to its hiding place. Samus looked up at her child and the child observed its mother with its own alien senses, but otherwise showed no further response. The human frowned ever so slightly. She missed the days when Warrior would snuggle up to her at the slightest provocation, a child perpetually thirsting for attention. But recently, it spent most of its time hiding in that corner.

And Warrior excelled at hiding. Its flesh, when dimmed, was transparent enough so that only its nuclei, fangs, and a faint contour of its body could be seen. The nuclei would turn anywhere from a dark red or purple to a brownish orange to a bright pink depending on what color would best disguise it in its environment. It would be practically invisible in the acid and brimstone world of SR388. Here, flattened against the burnished metal walls, it was somewhat conspicuous only if you looked right at it. More than once, Samus had panicked briefly when she couldn't find Warrior before she thought to call it out of hiding.

The metroid was lying in wait for potential prey. Not too long ago, it would mew pitifully at Samus to beg for a meal, but now it was either trying out its own hunting prowess or dissatisfied with its mother's recent lack of feeding.

Samus had been feeding her child with a small rechargeable energy cell since she's unable to sneak back onto her ship to secure Warrior's live food. It was clearly not the best substitute for a metroid at this critical stage of its growth. The last time she pressed upon Warrior's body, it no longer felt firm and tough, but more like a deflated sack half-full of organs. It seemed as if its internal components were absorbed to provide nutrients for its ballooning epidermis.

Despite the insubstantial food, Warrior had grown alarmingly since they first arrived on the space station. Samus could no longer wrap her arms around the metroid without squeezing it out of shape. Warrior was even too big to pass for a baby-bulged stomach anymore. The huntress confined herself to her room for the past week, claiming fatigue, nausea, headaches, hallucinations, or whatever excuse worked. Her meals were delivered to her and she used a pillow to simulate the pregnancy whenever people saw her. The pillow worked fine while she was sitting or lying down, but walking with it strapped to her torso would appear decidedly unlike flesh.

This act won't last forever. The more time she spent idle in her room, the more her frustration and desperation manifested itself into an almost physical discomfort, like an acid burn beneath her skin. She still needed to discover whether or not the X were involved on the Rebenada and to somehow remove the research station from SR388 so that the planet would be safe for her child. That, plus the urgent need to feed Warrior, plus being guest to the Federation's dubious hospitality, finally pressured her to pursue this new risky venture. Samus peered at her reflection one last time and glanced at Warrior, who remained unmoving. She commanded the metroid to stay frozen in it's current position and took her leave of the cramped little quarters.

The halls echoed with the curt clicking of her heels. A stolen key card bounced on a string around her neck, its original owner probably having replaced it by now. Holding her chin at a resolute angle, the tail of her coat trailing quietly behind her, the huntress was every bit the professional, self-confident researcher she pretended to be. Her eyes stared only forward, although her peripheral vision detected the occasional passerby. None of them paid her any attention. Nothing to see here, just a generic Federation employee. Samus? No, she doesn't have free access to these areas. And besides, she's pregnant.

Samus had already memorized as much of the Rebenada's layout as she could when Ferdinaz gave her a brief tour. Even if she didn't, navigating the station was easy enough due to its straightforward design. Consisting of one ridiculously long level compared to its height and to a lesser degree its width, no elevators were necessary on it. When people had to travel quickly from one sector to another, they made use of the coveyer floors or of small shuttles which linked the major areas. It seemed like an extremely inefficient design.

Or, perhaps, an overly cautious one.

Samus noted the frequent hatches she had to pass through, each with varying levels of encryption (which, fortunately, the keycard could access). These features would prove to be obstacles if Samus had to get to her suit in a hurry, for the docking bay and her quarters were some distance from the main research facility.

If these people thought that blocking access to her suit would deter the bounty hunter, then they had something else coming. She could always use the remote device attached to her thigh to summon her ship to retrieve her, and then her suit. Of course, if she could not make it to the docking bay, then a simple hole to any wall would function just as well for an exit. Last time she checked, she could survive for three minutes unprotected in cold, airless space, which was ample time for her to board her ship. Then those damned hatches would come in handy as airlocks.

She was musing this last thought when she abruptly arrived at her destination. The moment the door irised open, she squinted and raised a hand against the intense light, although her eyes adjusted quickly enough. The hydroponics garden was a disorientingly spacious chamber compared to the narrow corridors and certainly a welcome change from Samus's living quarters. Its height must be nearing the limits of the station's capabilities. The ceiling consisted of tinted polyethylene and lamps hung at regular intervals to emulate sunlight. The plants were placed just as neatly in grids or rows, all of them meticulously engineered for maximum productivity of air or food. For some, that meant growing to thicknesses as wide as Samus's ship and for others to heights that would scrape the stars if it wasn't for the barrier of a ceiling. A lush carpet of lumpy, spongy moss covered the floor, maintaining atmospheric moisture and making walking somewhat trecherous.

Samus considered herself fortunate that only five Karraries were currently on duty in the garden. Like many xenoforms, the Karrarie have difficulty recognizing human individuals. However, with their ability to sense life in all creatures, they were adept as gardeners and doctors. When Samus first met one on the Rebenada, she feared it would instantly realize that Warrior was attached to her instead of a human baby. It sniffed her over but apparently could not tell the difference between a human's life from a metroid's. It could only confirm that Samus's child was alive, which in turn helped the credibility of her pregnancy farce.

Samus did not deign to glance at the aliens as she passed by. Only one of the Karraries looked up at her briefly before returning to its work, using its long nose to sniff out parasites from plant roots. The human was free to pick out a sizable container with a screw-on lid and forage for the beetle-like crustaceans which fed off of decaying plant matter. It didn't take long; several of them were gathered around a withered tree marked for removal. Each of them were about the size of her fist and she soon had all she could carry without giving away her inhuman strength. She hefted the container in front of her, grunting a bit for extra plausibility, turned around, and became aware of another human working on a patch of vegetation in the distance.

At the same time, the man became aware of Samus. He called out something to her, waving his hand. She yelled back something urgent, apologetic, and deliberately incomprehensible before scuttling off, after which the man shrugged and returned to his work.

After another uneventful trip through the Rebenada's corridors, Samus finally reached her cabin. The hatch irised open and shut allowing the Hunter safely inside. She pressed her back against the door so quickly that her back slammed audibly against it. Before she could breathe a sigh of relief, a bloodcurdling shriek filled the room of its own accord.

Warrior materialized out of nowhere and lunged at the container she was still holding. It seized it in its fangs before she could react and easily crushed the glass walls, spilling blue crustaceans everywhere.

"No! Warrior! Freeze!" Samus rapidly called out all the commands that might make the metroid stop. But for the first time she could remember, Warrior refused to listen to her. She scrambled for a handhold on Warrior's slippery body in a futile effort to pry it away. The metroid screamed its defiance and bloodlust, completely ignoring its mother and intent on capturing as many crustaceans as it could. It didn't even bother to completely drain its current quarry before lunging for the next, fresher victim.

Samus had never seen Warrior behave like this before. It took her a moment to realize that she herself had once acted this way, before the Chozo fixed her rampant metroid DNA. She remembered very well the uncontrollable instinct to feed when deprived of energy for a long period of time. So she gave up wrestling with Warrior and flopped onto the bed, hands supporting her chin, watching the metroid devour its prey.

As the metroid grew more satiated, its body visibly firmed and glowed with health and it became less voracious, more playful even. The last crustacean had scrambled under the bed and Warrior hovered back and forth at ankle level waiting for it to come out. It squeezed its body as far as it could comfortably go under the bed, its fangs clawing at the floor for extra distance, then popped itself back out. Then Warrior did something which both surprised and pleased Samus. It started singing. Specifically, it was humming a tune which Samus used to calm the metroid and coax it towards her. The human was amazed that her metroid had made the intellectual leap from receiving and understanding commands to giving them. Of course, the crustacean didn't speak music and therefore remained safely in hiding.

Samus leaned over the bed to see what the critter was up to, then immediatley lifted her head as it zoomed out past where her nose was an instant ago. Warrior gave chase, shrieking gleefully, and plucked the morsel off the ground with its hind fangs. Then another surprise: Warrior gingerly, almost reverently, deposited the animal into its mother's hands, an offering to its parent.

"Um, thanks." Samus stared at the struggling creature, unsure about what to do with it. But it would be rude to refuse her child's generosity. She gently clamped her teeth where the joints in the crustacean's exoskeleton exposed the flesh, took a breath, and sucked out the bond between body and ghost. As she fed, she wrapped her free arm around Warrior while the metroid snuggled close to her and squealed its delight at the acceptance of its offering. Like finishing off a jolt of something tangy and tropical, Samus tossed her head back and gasped loudly after draining the life force. It refreshed her and stimulated her sixth sense, her sense of energy. As she looked upon the floor, she could see among the corpses the few crustaceans that were still alive but comatose. Warrior picked those out as easily as she did and continued to eat at its leisure.

"You've made quite a mess, Warrior." Samus remarked.

"Squrrr?" The accused inquired, its 'mouth' full of exoskeleton. It spat out the corpse and flew behind its mother. A pair of fangs lovingly wrapped around Samus's upper torso from behind and another pair hooked onto her collarbone. Warrior had outgrown its previous favorite perch on Samus's belly and now enjoyed being carried around like a backpack. Its mother was immensely pleased that Warrior was again in a snuggly mood after a week of reclusiveness.

Samus dumped the remnants of her meal, broken glass, and remaining corpses out the waste chute. Suddenly throwing up her arms, shaking Warrior loose in the process, she leisurely stretched her full length and in one fluid motion removed the chopsticks in her hair and overcoat with a shrug of her shoulders. In removing the glasses, she accidentally smacked her baby and sent it careening across the room.

She paused and gave the metroid a puzzled look. "Warrior, come." She said, beaconing it with a gesture. It squeaked once and obeyed without hesitation. Samus stroked the epidermis of her child and confirmed her suspicions that its shell was even harder than it used to be. She rapped on the skin with her knuckles and instead of being wholly absorbed by the protoplasm, a dull clicking sound could be heard.

Samus realized, quite belatedly, that Warrior was almost as large as the shells which Alpha metroids discarded after their metamorphosis. Perhaps the time for its own transformation was drawing near. The thought of her precious Warrior evolving brought about an inexplicable wave of sadness in the bounty hunter. It was less her metroid's physical transformation she was worried about and more the mental ones. How would the change affect its memories or its nature? Would Warrior become untamed and independent? Would it even need her as a mother anymore? She wished she had spent more time studying the metroids' behavior when she first ventured onto SR388.

Samus squeezed Warrior tightly in a moment of wistfulness, treasuring this sliver of time with her child and wishing it would last forever. Warrior relaxed in its mother's arms, slowly retarding its hovering ability until the huntress held its full weight. It was heavier than it looked, but the human was stronger than she looked.

Samus suddenly felt massively sleepy and hauled herself to bed with Warrior still attached to her stomach. She collapsed into an almost coma-like slumber which, although she didn't know it, was caused by her body digesting the unexpected energy she had acquired. She slept so soundly that she didn't even stir when a series of klaxons blared through the entire station. Warrior's light glowed for a moment in alarm, then settled down again. If its mother ignored the piercing sound, then it must not be a danger.

The rest of the Rebenada heard the warning and knew what it meant. Ferdinaz was at his desk when the klaxons started and his first thought was, "Oh no, not again." while his second was, "This is the third time in three cycles. The scientists will be too afraid to stay on board if this continues." He called up a holographic map of the Rebenada to see where the breach was. Thankfully, the damage was not serious. They would not have to jettison a sector like they did in the last two accidents, but he sent in a team to neutralize the contaminated area. As a further precaution, he ordered the technicians to cut the third and fourth lines of power, effectively locking all hatches in the sector and several others. It also shut off most of the artificial light, which would be what woke Samus Aran from her slumber.

The bounty hunter immediately sat up and put a hand to the laser strapped to her leg. She quickly scanned the room, finding it pitch black except where Warrior's warm glow reached. The metroid was more bothered by its mother's sudden awakening than by the darkness. Samus concentrated harder, reaching out with her energy senses, and felt that it was the lack of power which caused the blackout. The klaxon finally registered in her mind and she chided herself for not noticing earlier.

Was this just a simple power failure, and the klaxon just a warning for it? Samus tried to open the door out her room and found it unresponsive. She knew that the hatches and lighting were on separate power lines and it was unlikely that both of them would be knocked out at the same time. It didn't seem like she was being deliberately locked in her room either; there's no reason for the klaxon or the lights.

"Warrior," She said, drawing the metroid closer so she could use its light to see. With the laser, she cut away the thin metal of the door's controls until she reached the inner wiring. She meticulously picked through the cables until she found the one she wanted and twisted it in two. Then she opened the energy cell of her laser and pressed the exposed wires against it. With her other hand, she held one of Warrior's fangs and tried to make the child focus on what she was doing.

"Jumpstart." She said, and transferred some energy from the laser to the door. Warrior didn't move. "Jumpstart" Samus said again, and again she transferred some energy, although it was not nearly enough to open the hatch. She did this again, then sheathed her laser and replaced it with the metroid. "Jumpstart" She commanded, but Warrior only wiggled its fangs. She could see that no energy was being passed to the door so she put the metroid down and demonstrated again with the laser. A part of her didn't expect this trick would work, but she had been led to believe that metroid energy was like blood type O in its compatibility with everything.

It took a few more trails before Warrior understood "Jumpstart" to mean 'give energy'. The next time Samus pressed the wires against its front mandibles, it regurgitated a wave of energy strong enough to open the hatch.

"Yes! Good Warrior!" Samus commended her child in a pleased, but subdued voice. With the door stuck on open, anyone passing by could hear her or see the metroid. "Seru. Diaora." And instantly the metroid dimmed down and stopped chirping.

Samus wondered what she would do next now that the door was open and she felt less like a trapped animal. Actually, she had felt slightly hunted during her entire stay on the Rebenada, as if unseen eyes perpetually drilled through her shoulder blades. This state of emergency might be the best time for her to retrieve her suit and explore more of the research station. The darkness and confusion would aid her well in espionage. She would not get another opportunity this fortunate any time soon. It was time for the hunted to again become the hunter.

Before she left, she slipped the black dress over her undergarments and grabbed the keycard. Warrior followed her just a step behind her ankles, still silent and barely visible in its faint luminescence.

Samus 'jumpstarted' a few more doors before Ferdinaz finally noticed her activities. He couldn't see her with cameras due to the lack of light, but his sensors indicated that a trail of hatches were being left open, starting from Aran's chambers and leading up to the 5th research sector where her suit was being held. It would bring her dangerously close to the contaminated sector. The Commander holstered his Federation issue hand beam, gathered a small group of armed guards, and set off with them to personally greet the rogue bounty hunter.


	28. Chapter 28

Samus's feet were almost a blur as she hurried through the Rebenada's darkened corridors. She did not run. Every step was deliberatly softened lest her footfalls echo metallically down the halls. Her eyes adjusted to the inky blackness; she could see well enough with the aid of Warrior's watery light.

She paused at the numerous hatches in her path, opening them without difficulty and quickly leaving them behind. Only the final door gave her trouble because the laser would not cut through the tougher shielding which protected its controls. She melted the screws away and heated the metal to a weakened state before kicking in the shielding and prying it loose with her hands. The more delicate parts of her palm hissed and skin remained where it came in contact with the metal. But her hands stayed functional and that was enough, for now.

The hatch opened up to a single room the size of a sector. Each step landed silently on her heel, the foot rolling forwards until the toe left the ground for the next step. A whisper from her lips made Warrior flare like a tiny nova, forming dancing shadows over orderly rows of equipment. But it was not nearly enough to see the far corners of the sector. Her hand rested briefly on the metroid, letting it feel the vibrations made deep in her throat, and its light again retreated to a candlelight ember. The relative coolness of Warrior's skin soothed her throbbing hand although she regarded the bloody print she left behind with distaste. She spat on her hands, wiped off as much blood as she could on her dress, and flexed her fingers carefully to test their stiffness.

The darkness here was not so stifling compared to the corridors. Some machinery whirred and glowed faintly, operating on power separate from the main lighting systems. The nearest windows along the outer walls framed a panoramic view of SR388, glowing poisonously rust and yellow, the sickle boundary between day and night clearly visible. The planet was striking enough to make Samus pause and look. A sizable chunk of material was missing from the surface of SR388 where the BSL station struck it with such explosive force. She could see it even from this distance, an overripe fruit bleeding from a monstrous, crater-sized bite. She turned away.

The power suit had been dismantled and was attached to a variety of equipment, each part being independantly studied in a separate area of the sector. The closest piece was the arm cannon which Samus reached for greedily. She brushed off the wires attached to gun, loosened the vicegrip holding it in place, and stuck her right hand in. The arm cannon came to life at her touch, immediatly facilitating the growth of new skin over her wound. She toggled the cannon's controls and the other portions of her suit answered, beaconing to each other with sounds and light, yearning to be whole again.

She took one step towards her helmet but stopped, attracted by the flickering of a nearby moniter. At first she could make no sense of the blue holograph flickering in and out of existence. Upon closer inspection, she realized it was a map of the Rebenada, including parts she had been forbidden to access.

She leaned in and blinked. There were parts of it, whole sectors, that didn't exist in reality. The sectors were labled all the way up to '22' while Samus was certain that they only ran from '1' to '15'. She couldn't recall seeing three large satellite dishes on the far end of the station when she first set eyes upon it. It might be a blueprint for some future extension. Or it's a map of what the station used to be like. Samus sought out her helmet. She would have to download this information.

It was then that Warrior let out a warning hiss which Samus echoed, hearing its cause a split second later. "Warrior! Come!" She flipped up the hem of her dress. The metroid zipped to its perch and Samus fumbled to smooth her garment over it right as Ferdinaz and his procession poured into the room. They threw beams of light over exposed surfaces, making the huntress shield her eyes as several focused on her. The Commander strode purposefully forward as his soldiers either followed him or circled around, guarding key pieces of the power suit. Samus remained where she stood, partially obscured by a desk and the flickering holograph lighting up the lower contures of her face.

"What are you doing here?" Ferdinaz growled, stopping some distance from her as he saw the arm cannon.

"I want my suit." She replied. "Some alarm goes off and suddenly I'm locked in my room? I have enough experience with self-destructing stations to want to be prepared to survive them."

Ferdinaz scrutinized her, narrowing his brow. Then he shook his head. "I'm sorry. It was just a small failure in the generators that knocked out the doors and lights. They'll be up shortly. You didn't need to panic."

"Did other people panic? I saw no one in the corridors. And what kind of small failure accounts for several power lines going out at once?"

"That was my doing. It's standard procedure to lock down the sectors in the nature of these sort of situations."

"What situations? I have never heard of such procedures."

"Ms. Aran, you are distraught." He took a step closer and held out a hand, palm up, like for a frightened child. "You can wait it out in your room. Before you know it the crisis will be over. I have several men working on the problem."

"You sent people?" She appeared incredulous. "To the 15th sector, right? Where the crisis originated. You want to waste more lives? Why didn't you just eject the whole sector like you did with all the others?"

"What?" Ferdinaz's transition from pacifying to outraged was instantaneous. "What are you talking about?" Behind him, someone's weapon clicked.

"That's why the Rebenada's shaped like this, right?" Samus continued as if she didn't hear him. "Long and flat. All those hatches. It's made so that the furthest and most dangerous part can be broken off when something screws up, right?"

"Samus, you will return to-"

"Holy shit, Ferdinaz." She cut him off. "There used to be at least 22 sectors. That's 7 sectors lost since B.S.L. How long will it be before accidents coincide and the entire station is screwed over? And if you're experimenting on what I think you are, then there's more at stake than this one research station."

The Commander was silent for a moment, his breathing slow and deliberate. The whites of his eyes, the only parts of him visible against his blue-tinted silhouette, seemed to protrude and vibrate. He came to a decision. "Markriel. Aehche. Apprehend her." A human wearing pricision sensory weapons stepped in front of Ferdinaz and a Yuslin guard to Samus's right lumbered forward. "But be gentle." Ferdinaz added as the two soldeirs started circling the woman. "The rest of you: hold your fire." And despite saying that, he unholstered his own weapon. He glowered at Samus. "I don't know how you came to these conclusions, Ms. Aran, but you are clearly not of sound mind right now. This is for your own safety."

Samus threw Ferdinaz a disdainful look before turning to the Yuslin, offering the other guard an opportunity to fumble with his crosshairs. She raised her arm cannon and downed the human without so much as a glance in his direction. It took two shots, the power beam was not at its full potential. And in that time, the Yuslin, much faster than his huge bulk suggested him to be, charged at her.

Samus motioned to roll away but stumbled when she remembered Warrior attached to her. She swung her beam cannon and the Yuslin, whose arms were even faster than his legs, grabbed it, lifting her up with one hand. Samus rotated her arm severely, a testament to her flexibility, fighting like a wired cat. But not even with her Chozo strength could she wrest free of the Yuslin's grip. The huntress dug her other hand into the alien's blubbery arm, twisted towards him, and sank her teeth into his wrist.

The reaction was instantaneous. The Yuslin screamed and flailed his arms, sending Samus careening across the room. Ferdinaz watched, mystified, as she hit the wall with her hands and feet, pushed against it, and landed on the floor with a controlled tumble in a way impossible for a pregnant woman. The Commander glanced back at the Yuslin who was whimpering and nursing his arm from an invisible wound. He turned again to the bounty hunter and it was his belated discovery that she could not possibly be pregnant.

Without anything obstructing it, he could see that the bulge on her stomach was massive beyond what was natural. He had half a mind to ask what sort of alien parasite her intestines were playing host to when the bulge disappeared and indeed an alien parasite emerged from beneath the hem of the dress.

"NO ONE SHOOT!" Ferdinaz immediatly roared. It was to their credit that the guards obeyed their Commander, although a few had their weapons trained on the new arrival. Most of them knew what a metroid looked like and what it could do. They had no chance against it with their conventional firearms. Afraid to move, their eyes followed the metroid as it considered which fleshy morsal to devour first. But Ferdinaz watched Samus, finding himself unable to tear his gaze away from her. She stood there with a relaxed pose, annoyed, bored even. Her dress now reached her calves and accented her streamlined form. She was the eye of the maelstrom, the central calm of chaos surrounded by the guards and the metroid orbiting her head.

"Everyone, put down your weapons." She said, her voice carrying far in this spacious room. Some of the guards obeyed, some looked to Ferdinaz and only started disarming when they saw him do the same. "And go over there." She pointed to the brightest corner of the sector where she could keep an eye on them all. "Except you, Ferdinaz." She cocked a finger. "You're coming with me."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

I had entered a garden of sulfur and pumice fed by endless springs of lava. Acid bled out of every pore of the planet, eating away at the very earth from which it emerged. The heat was enough to erode my vision. Could the Chozo have lived here? But they must have. Their effigies lined the cavern walls and pillars carved by their hands lay fallen across my path. I stepped upon them gingerly, unwilling to awaken another one of their ancient sentinals. Perhaps this was a gentler place in the past, before the arrival of the Space Pirates. Before my arrival. I could survive here with the Varia suit. And it was to my disbelief that anything else could.

Indigenous creatures, those who thrived and were comprised of inferno, objected to my intrusion into their realm. They posed little threat to me but their malice matched the hostility of Lower Norfair. Even Space Pirates rarely came down here; the two I had encountered were of the most formidable variety.

They were Zebesian Elites. No different in appearance to normal Zebesians except for their mottled black exoskeletons with the texture of just-cooled lava. They arose from the shadows like extensions of the stonework, their hissing like the extinguishing of a fire. They moved in unison, their heads bowed, sizing me up.

"Hmm." I said to myself, bracing my legs.

And, as if that slight movement was a trigger, they both hurled a bladed claw at me and leaped, attacking from above as I threw myself aside to avoid the projectiles.

"Shi-!" I barely touched the ground before I rolled into a ball. Their feet crashed simultaneously on either side of my spherical form and I believed myself to be momentarily safe. Then one of them kicked me!

Getting kicked as a ball might have been amusing if I could see myself, if I was someone else, if I didn't unfurl in midair right as my back collided with an outcropping of rock. It hurt like hell but kept me from plunging into the lava. Did the Pirates find this funny? They were deadly serious. I morphed again just as another blade sailed over my head.

These two were not faster than me although it felt like it. Because they never hesitated, because there were two of them and they fought as one. And now that I knew this, they would never catch me off guard again.

Do they honestly think they can defeat me? They are not worthy.

On my feet, I unleashed sheets of ice along the porous floor to make their acrobatics treacherous. They were unfamiliar with ice, not expecting it in this sweltering furnace. They squawked in astonishment as they landed after a jump and glided right past their destination. In this way they exposed their backs. I selected one to embed a super missile into. My target faltered, shrieking. The other Pirate quickly moved to distract me, this time using the ice to his advantage in delivering a sliding kick intended to connect with my ankles. I took to the air in a screw attack and practically fell on top of the injured Pirate.

"Keruskvieum!" He cried, trying to untangle his limbs from my legs and scrambling to climb upright. I took special pleasure in shoving his face into the ground, leaning all my weight against the back of his head. I awkwardly positioned the barrel of my gun arm into the wound at his back.

The other Zebesian hurled a blade in desperation. But since I would have to forfit my victim to dodge the weapon, I let it connect, taking the blow just above my visor. With that claw sticking out of my helmet like the lid of a cap I churned up the Pirate's insides with another super missile and watched the resulting carnage come out of his mouth.

The ice had become water and it was bubbling into steam. I stood up in that fog and wrenched the blade from my helmet, making a sound like twisting metal. It was bloody. My head ached like blood was appropriate but this was not my blood, it was blood from the dead Pirate transfered from my hand onto the appendage. The groove it made on my suit was disappearing as if it had only been a crease from a furrowed brow.

The outline of the remaining Space Pirate wavered in the mist as if he was also going up in smoke. He was warier now. Keeping his distance. Afraid. He probably trained with his partner to such a degree that the prospect of fighting alone never occured to him.

"Right," I muttered, too tired to taunt with any vitality. "You're next." The clouds evaporated like an unveiling.

I made the first move, just like the Zebesians' first move of launching a projectile and charging to where the target will move to avoid it. The Pirate jumped out of my missile's trajectory and leaped again to dodge my lunge. But I didn't lunge, I only feinted the move. He twisted in the air to face where he anticipated I would be after passing under him except I backpedaled and ended up behind him. I took aim between his back muscles, at the ridge of his spine.

At such a close range my adversary was blown right off his feet and sent tumbling into the lava. If he shrieked as he was incinerated, I didn't hear it; it happened so fast and my ears were still reverberating from the shockwave of the super missile.

In this hard-won chamber I felt it was safe to rest, if only for a moment. I lowered my gun arm, rotated my shoulders, registered the thick heat. It had been many hours since I landed on Zebes, so long that the planet would have orbited its sun at least once by now. I wasn't tired, not physically. It was my mind that felt stretched and frayed. Too long without sleep would do that, too much thinking without respite. Too many trials without a glimpse of my goal. My child.

And yet I knew there were only greater challenges ahead. Those two Zebesian Elites would not be standing in the depths of Norfair just to idle. Restless with hope and anxiety over what might await me, my urgency quickly overcame my mental fatigue. When my trials are over, there will be all the time in the world.


End file.
